Now that Microsoft settled to pay $250 million to Activision shareholders led by Swedish pension fund Sjunde AP-Fonden, comments of the former chief executive, Bobby Kotick, resurfaced, in which he alleged the lawsuit was merely a means to strengthen Swedish publisher Embracer Group’s position in the market.
That is according to Eurogamer, which, citing Game File, writes how Kotick argued the lawsuit was only “aimed to help Embracer increase its foothold in the California market at the expense of Activision.”
This was in response to Sjunde alleging that Kotick “rushed” the merger to keep his position in the company and cash in on change-of-control bonuses, as we wrote yesterday, but also to “avoid the consequences of sexual misconduct scandals swirling around the company.”
Kotick both denied these allegations and added that Embracer Group, one of Sweden’s biggest publishers and one notorious for buying and closing down studios from around the world, was “a potential secret collaborator” in this lawsuit and the entity standing behind it.
Embracer later denied these claims, saying that it doesn’t need anyone’s help to compete with Activision.
Yesterday, it was reported that Microsoft and Sjunde AP-Fonden reached a settlement that would both conclude the lawsuit and account for counterclaims filed by both Microsoft and Kotick, a part of which is outlined above. The settlement payout is $250 million, allegedly to make up for Activision shortchanging its shareholders as Kotick and executives “rushed” into merging with Microsoft for personal gain.
