Activision Blizzard Reportedly Plans To Shift Away From Live In-Person Events
As reported by Sports Business Journal and Bloomberg, Activision Blizzard has fired 50 employees involved in the company’s esports division.
Activision Blizzard President Of Sports And Entertainment Tony Petitti told Sports Business Journal that the lay-offs were a result of the company’s intentions to adapt during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In short, the company wants to shift away from live in-person events. However, Petitti did say that Activision Blizzard won’t completely do away with live events in the future.
“We learned a lot last year in terms of how the leagues can be structured for online play, and we’ll look to carry forward the best practices from that. In terms of timing, it’s a reaction to the realities of how the leagues are playing and what resources we need to allocate to best serve the league, owners, teams and fans.”
According to Bloomberg, U.S. workers who were laid off will get 90 days (at minimum) of severance and health benefits along with a $200 gift card to Battle.net. For those who don’t know, Battle.net is Blizzard’s PC service.
Jason Schreier, who wrote the Bloomberg report, would later add that the number of people affected by the lay-offs is actually “much higher.”
This news comes roughly a month after Activision Blizzard posted its fourth-quarter and 2020 financial results. From Black Ops Cold War to Warzone to other Activision Blizzard franchises, 2020 appeared to be another huge year for the company from a revenue and engagement standpoint.
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SOURCE: Sports Business Journal, Bloomberg