Activision Blizzard had a good year
In Activision Blizzard’s fourth-quarter earnings report, CEO Bobby Kotick announced that the company “delivered the best performance in its history” and will “continue to invest in [its] established franchises, as well as several new properties” in 2013.
Yes, Call of Duty: Black Ops II obviously helped make this possible, as did the massively successful Skylanders franchise with its 100 million toys sold worldwide, but it was also Diablo III that came through for Activision Blizzard. For all the outcry we see online, this was the best-selling PC game at retail with more than 12 million copies sold worldwide through December 31, 2012.
Looking ahead, Kotick explained that “In the short-term, we expect to continue delivering strong profitability, but below our record setting 2012 performance, due to a challenged global economy, the ongoing console transition and a difficult year-over-year comparison because of Blizzard’s record-shattering Diablo III success in 2012.”
