Activision Blizzard is all set to be an independent company once again, for it has announced that it will be buying itself back from current owner Vivendi, in a deal that involves the transaction of about 8.2 billion USD. While the French conglomerate will still be retaining 83 million shares which translates to about 12 percent ownership of the company, Activision itself will be an independent firm, as a majority of its shares will be owned by the public.
It has been confirmed that Bobby Kotick will indeed continue as the CEO, and Brian Kelly will keep acting as the co-chairman. The exact cost incurred by Activision Blizzard for this transition is roughly 5.83 billion USD, and this amount will be paid in cash. This actually means that it will be purchasing 429 million shares from the Vivendi.
Over and above that, Kotick and Kelly will lead an investment firm named ASAC II LP which will separately buy approximately 172 million shares from the French company for about 2.34 billion USD in cash, or at 13.60 USD per share. Speaking on this matter, Kotick has mentioned that these transactions altogether herald a ‘tremendous opportunity’ for Activision Blizzard and all its shareholders.
Expressing hopes of emerging ‘even stronger’ as an independent company, he mentioned that the new transaction will allow Activision Blizzard to take advantage of attractive financing markets. And at the same time, the company will still be able to retain more than 3 billion USD worth of cash on hand to preserve financial stability.
Activision Blizzard has one of the biggest upcoming games lined up for release this year in the form of Call of Duty: Ghosts will be released for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PC, and as has just been announced, also for Nintendo’s Wii U.