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Activision Publishing CEO resigns, remains Vice Chairman of Activision Blizzard
We know, we know -- you read that headline too quickly and immediately went into shock, worried that the value of your mint Topps 2007 Bobby Kotick Game Industry Executive collectible card just plummeted. Relax, folks, we're talking about the Activision Publishing CEO Mike Griffith, known best for lending his dulcet tones and vision for the future to quarterly investor calls (we'll miss him so!). According to a report at Edge Online, Griffith will be keeping his position at Activision Blizzard on the board of directors, where he currently serves as vice chairman. In so many words, rather than talking about games that aren't out yet on the phone with investors, he'll be spending more time doing so in private. Oh, and he'll be working on "key initiatives and projects" to the tune of $250K each year. [Update: See the Activision SEC filing.]
Report: Activision reshuffles execs in US, UK; layoffs result
According to "internal memos" acquired by the LA Times, Activision has switched up more of its executive positions, in addition to the change in position for Thomas Tippl, who is currently co-serving CFO/CCO/COO (enough acronyms?). A representative for the company told the LA Times, "We realigned our structure to better reflect our slate and marketing opportunities and direct our resources against the largest, most profitable business segments," without directly confirming a claimed 15 layoffs in the US. The report claims that, in an email from company head Bobby Kotick, Activision revealed that business head Mike Griffith will now serve as vice chairman and adviser to Kotick, while Thomas Tippl's new job is detailed as "the only executive reporting directly to Kotick" (and overseer of Blizzard head Mike Morhaime). Heading up licensed game properties will now supposedly be Dave Oxford, in addition to Maria Stripp taking over "all internally owned titles besides Call of Duty and Blizzard games" (CTO Steve Pearce and product head Steve Ackrich are temporarily overseeing the CoD franchise). Further, MCV confirmed with Activision that the corporate reshuffling will result in changes in the publisher's UK division as well, though no specifics are available at this time. The site claims to have independently confirmed UK layoffs have already occurred, and we've reached out to Activision for clarification on both reports. Source - Activision Blizzard quietly hits reset button [latimes.com] Source - Activision UK to restructure [MCV] If you're with Activision or a former employee and would like to speak with Joystiq regarding the company's situation, please feel free to contact us. (Your tips will remain confidential. Please leave a valid email address in case we have further questions. Thank you!)
Activision severely cutting music game releases in 2010
Activision plans to cut down on the number of Hero games in 2010. According to Activision Publishing CEO Mike Griffith in a conference call, the company expects the music game business to decline further as "the casual consumer proves less robust" and people are saturated enough with instrument controllers that they start buying only new discs. "Fewer SKUs will service a broader audience," Griffith said. "In 2009 we released 25 music SKUs, and in 2010 we plan to release less than 10." The cuts will come in the form of PS2 versions and Band Hero bundles (leaving only standalone discs for that game), as the company focuses on Guitar Hero and DJ Hero releases in the "back half of the year." That 25 SKU number, by the way, is a pretty conservative estimate. We added up just each console version of Guitar Hero Metallica, Guitar Hero Smash Hits, Guitar Hero 5, Guitar Hero Van Halen, Guitar Hero On Tour Modern Hits, DJ Hero, and Band Hero -- not counting various instrument bundles or special editions, and not counting cell phone versions -- and came up with 26. If you were to add things like the Renegade Edition of DJ Hero and add standalone disc releases to instrument bundles, that number would go up significantly.
Activision talks 2010: Bond is back, joined by Tony Hawk, Spider-Man, and 'innovative' action game
On this afternoon's earnings call, Activision Publishing CEO Mike Griffith dropped some details on what we can expect out of Activision in 2010. Of course, there's "a strong lineup behind the Guitar Hero franchise" and some Call of Duty "new releases" as well as "online monetization" of the franchise (not this again!) and strong Modern Warfare 2 sales, but that's not all it has in store for 2010. "We'll launch also new games based on James Bond, Tony Hawk, and Spider-Man, along with games supporting the theatrical releases for Dreamworks' Shrek 4 and How to Train Your Dragon," Griffith said. "In addition, as previously announced, we're planning to release an innovative property in the $4b action genre." Here's Activision CEO Bobby Kotick discussing the aforementioned $4b opportunity; could this be what former Dead Space producer Glen Schofield dumped EA and went to Activision for? Regardless, it's been nearly half a year since we got an update on Activision's first stab at the Bond franchise, after acquiring the rights from EA over three years ago. So it looks we'll be seeing more of Bond in '10 ... two-thousand and ten.
Activision confidence bolstered by 2009 lineup, 'sparser' competition
Speaking to MCV, Activision CEO Mike Griffith was feeling pretty confident about his company's position in the game industry this year. "This is the best competitive position we've ever had," said Griffith, adding, "Our titles are strong, and competitive titles are a little sparser than in the past." Griffith sounds particularly proud of the Guitar Hero franchise, which he notes has its strongest lineup ever with DJ Hero, Guitar Hero 5 and Band Hero all set to release this year (what, no love for Van Halen?). Griffith also mentioned Modern Warfare 2, which he says will be the biggest Call of Duty ever (no surprises there). And let's not forget Tony Hawk's Ride and Bizarre's upcoming racer, Blur.Griffith doesn't seem concerned by competition from The Beatles: Rock Band either, saying quite simply, "Well, Rock Band is the most similar title on the market, but Guitar Hero outsells it by four to one in the US; in Europe that number is ten to one." Okay then. Griffith also shakes off the notion that Activision is flooding the market with peripheral-based games (Ride and all of the Guitar Hero games rely on peripherals), stating that the company only uses peripherals when they "define a magical experience that comes about when you marry hardware and software."Other topics covered in the interview include Griffith's feelings about Natal and the Playstation Motion Controller, Activision's business in Europe and the continued importance of retail.
Activision considering an acquisition (or eight)
Let's role-play: You're mega-publisher Activision Blizzard, with $3 billion in cash and no debt. What do you do?...NO, building the world's largest ball pool is not an acceptable answer. According to Activision Publishing's top man, Mike Griffith, Blizzavision is considering going on an acquisition safari. Bloomberg reports that Griffith didn't mention any specific targets, but added that the company "won't rush to judgment" just because it has the cash. Let's remember, when Activision really uses its cash, it grabs multi-million dollar franchises or merges into multi-billion dollar corporations.[Via VideoGamer] [Image]
Activision exec: Videogames will eclipse other entertainment
Activision-Blizzard exec Mike Griffith also made a showing at last week's CES, crowing about an industry that he and his company are heading towards the top of. He said to a crowd there that videogames would "eclipse" "movies, recorded music and TV" as forms of entertainment in the future. He claimed that media such as films and music were passive, and that games are moving ever closer to becoming "a legitimate story-telling medium that rivals feature films."Which all seems true, except that it's coming from someone who stands to make a lot of money off of just that happening. Still, for all of the bluster of Activision-Blizzard's hotshots, they've got a few of the most popular franchises in gaming behind them -- Blizzard (of course), the Call of Duty franchise, and Guitar Hero, which has made over a billion dollars for Activision. Especially in a time of declining CD sales, Griffith's words ring truer than ever.But let's not forget, of course, that you can't have great stories without great storytellers, and the folks at Blizzard are definitely that. For all of Activision's bragging, they can't forget that these franchises, all of them, came from strong and talented studios -- Call of Duty was crafted by Infinity Ward, Guitar Hero by Harmonix, and obviously all of Blizzard's properties were put together by the company formerly known as Silicon and Synapse. Griffith can brag that his media is taking over the world, but we hope Activision doesn't forget who helped them get there.
CES 2009: Activision's Keyno-thing of interest
Activision's CES keynote should have been titled "Remedial Gaming 101: A History of Gaming." Activision Publishing CEO Mike Griffith took us through a not-so-brief history of gaming, from Pong to Pac-Man to "even games that used to feature trackballs, and yes, even joysticks." Although, that's not the point when the chap in the photo above fell asleep -- that happened much earlier.Oddly, Activision didn't manage to fit in a single plug for its upcoming game Prototype, which was apparently left out on the show floor for this one. No banners, no teaser, not even a still. Instead the stage was littered with games from 2008: Call of Duty: World at War, Spider-Man: Web of Shadows, Madagascar 2, Quantum of Solace, Guitar Hero: World Tour, and so on. It was deja vu, and we found ourselves literally checking our badges to make sure we weren't at E3 2008. Note to Activision: You've got a captive audience sitting in seats and (mostly) paying attention -- take advantage of 'em!
Activision considering DLC subscription service for Guitar Hero
At Activision Blizzard's Analyst Day, CEO Mike Griffith spoke of plans to offer a subscription service option for the Guitar Hero games. "We're exploring new models, like an annual pass subscription where players can subscribe and get a certain number of songs downloadable each month." No prices or launch dates were discussed, but we are assuming those who regularly purchase DLC for the Guitar Hero games will be able to save a few bucks.In the realm of rumors, former lead guitarist of Guns N' Roses Slash said a Rolling Stone interview that Guitar Hero: Hendrix is coming. "Well, having the Aerosmith guys do it was very cool 'cause Aerosmith's one of the bands I was heavily influenced by. And Metallica's doing it, that's great. Those are two ones that I think gives it some credibility. And they're doing a Hendrix one, which is great." Activision won't comment on the rumor, but with the guitar virtuoso making an appearance in the upcoming Guitar Hero: World Tour, it wouldn't surprise us in the least if this came true.Source -- ShacknewsSource -- Rolling Stone via GameDaily
