Activision Blizzard Presents “Solid” Fiscal Results Amid Harassment Crisis

These results correspond to the quarter from April to June, before the demand was known.

Activision Blizzard faces an internal and image crisis of immense proportions due to abuse and discrimination in its offices . But, at least for today, his board manages to maintain a facade of “normality” in the face of economists. The Santa Monica company has published its financial report for the April-June quarter with results that its CEO, Bobby Kotick, classifies as “solid” , and that they serve to raise the company’s annual forecasts despite the crisis they face.

Activision Blizzard raises its annual forecastsIn fact, Bobby Kotick’s statement begins with a message of reassurance to its investors: “The company continues to deliver strong results in the second quarter, and we are raising our annual forecasts”, before adding that “we remain focused on ensuring well-being. of our employees and we are committed to doing everything we can to ensure our company has a safe, open and supportive environment. ” Recall that Activision Blizzard shareholders sued the company just minutes before this fiscal report was published.

But back to results, AB closes its second quarter with GAAP net income of $ 2.3 billion , a 19% growth over 2020 despite the pandemic. The profit margin was 42% in this period, while their cash flow was 388 million dollars, compared to the 768 million dollars they had in Q2 2020. As we mentioned in another news this morning, Bobby Kotick returns to reiterate the company’s commitment to its employees in the tax report, shortly after submitting these data.

CoD adds as many hours of play this Q2 as in all of 2019As for the company’s games and sagas, the data is as follows for each of its divisions. Activision has 127 million active monthly users this quarter. The Call of Duty saga registers its best user figures for Q2 thanks to free offers such as Warzone and Call of Duty Mobile , surpassing the data of 2020 and tripling those of 2019. In fact, so many have been played in this quarter alone hours of Call of Duty as in the entirety of 2019. The company expects CoD Mobile to generate more than $ 1 billion in revenue this year.

In the case of Blizzard , this division registers 26 million active monthly users . World of Warcraft revenues grow “in double digits” over 2020, driven by Burning Crusade Classic. The company expects WoW to have better user numbers than usual for a year without new expansion, despite the image crisis Blizzard is facing. They also highlight that Hearthstone registers growth this quarter and expect even better results for the rest of the year, thanks to its expansions. Likewise, as we shared this morning, Diablo Immortal is delayed to 2022 .

Blizzard also claims that the development of Diablo 4 continues to make great progress , and that Overwatch 2 has passed a new milestone in its development. Finally, King increases its revenue by 15% and reaches 255 million active monthly users, in the wake of a Candy Crush that never stops. While AB has raised its annual forecast, the company also mentions the following, in response to the state of California’s lawsuit: “If we experience prolonged periods of adverse publicity , significantly reduced productivity, or other negative consequences as a result of this matter, our business would be negatively impacted . “

We recall that, as a result of this lawsuit, Blizzard employees have organized strikes against the company and have responded negatively to Bobby Kotick’s attempts to defuse the situation, stating that they will continue the fight against the company until real action is taken. and effective. With employees in revolt and shareholders suing the company, will Activision Blizzard be able to meet its forecasts and development deadlines?