MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
As rumours mount about where jobs cuts will come in the wake of Activision’s ‘merger’ with Vivendi, CFO of the newly formed company Thomas Tippl has told MCV that Blizzard will remain untouched by the process.
After confirming to MCV that the company faced job cuts last week, Tippl promised that the World Of Warcraft developer would remain autonomous and would operate just as they have done in the past".
Blizzard has established the most successful business in all of video games,” he told MCV. It’s not like we need to go there and fix something. Blizzard will continue to operate as they have done in the past – fairly independently.
They have a top notch management and development team and we have a very high degree of confidence that they know how to run the business and a track record to prove it. In addition, they have an extraordinarily strong product pipeline, with Starcraft, Wrath of the Litch King and Diablo 3.
It would be a big mistake for us to distract them with new ideas.”
However, Tippl did drop a big hint that established Activision brands from the West would be introduced to Eastern markets by Blizzard – and would be boosted by the firm’s reputation and expertise.
There are some opportunities we will be exploring there, especially relating to their expertise in Asia,” he said.
If you consider that Guitar Hero is not in Asia yet and that the only way to create a business there is figuring out ways to work in internet cafes, etc., we hope to benefit from their expertise.”
