Studio to Focus on Music-Based Games
SANTA MONICA, Calif., Sept. 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Further
strengthening its development resources and underscoring its commitment to
the music-based genre, Activision Publishing, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) today
announced that it has acquired FreeStyleGames, a premier U.K.-based video
game developer specializing in music-based games.
This acquisition represents the latest step in Activision Publishing's
strategy to expand its global leadership position in the music-based genre.
The company established the genre with the Guitar Hero(R) franchise, which
has sold in excess of 22 million units worldwide, according to The NPD
Group, Charttrack and GFK. FreeStyleGames is currently developing localized
downloadable content for the Guitar Hero franchise, as well as a yet to be
announced new, intellectual property in the music genre.
"Activision Publishing is the undisputed leader in the music-based
games and we see tremendous opportunity for continued growth, particularly
in Europe," said Mike Griffith, President and CEO of Activision Publishing,
Inc. "An important part of our European growth strategy is to work with
local developers and provide music content that resonates with the market.
FreeStyleGames has an award-winning team with a history of developing
innovative and creative music-based games and they are uniquely positioned
to help us expand our leadership in the genre."
"This is an exciting time for our company and great recognition of our
success to date that Activision Publishing would look to welcome us to
their studio roster," said Jamie Jackson of FreeStyleGames. "Our goal has
always been to deliver the most compelling entertainment experiences, and
with the infrastructure, support and financial resources of Activision
Publishing, we will be able to set our goals even higher than they are
today."
Under the terms of the acquisition agreement, FreeStyleGames has become
a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Publishing and the company's
management team has signed long-term employment contracts with Activision
Publishing. The studio will continue to be based in Leamington Spa, U.K.
Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Activision Publishing, Inc.
is a leading worldwide developer, publisher and distributor of interactive
entertainment and leisure products.
Activision Publishing maintains operations in the U.S., Canada, the
United Kingdom, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, Spain, the
Netherlands, Australia, Japan and South Korea.
More information about Activision Publishing and its products can be
found on the company's website, http://www.activision.com.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements: Information in
this press release that involves Activision Publishing's expectations,
plans, intentions or strategies regarding the future are forward-looking
statements that are not facts and involve a number of risks and
uncertainties. Activision Publishing generally uses words such as
"outlook", "will," "could," "would," "might," "remains," "to be," "plans,"
"believes", "may", "expects," "intends," "anticipates," "estimate,"
future," "plan," "positioned," "potential," "project," "remain,"
"scheduled," "set to," "subject to," "upcoming" and similar expressions to
help identify forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause
Activision Publishing's actual future results to differ materially from
those expressed in the forward-looking statements set forth in this release
include, but are not limited to, sales of Activision Publishing's titles,
shifts in consumer spending trends, the seasonal and cyclical nature of the
interactive game market, Activision Publishing's ability to predict
consumer preferences among competing hardware platforms (including
next-generation hardware), declines in software pricing, product returns
and price protection, product delays, retail acceptance of Activision
Publishing's products, adoption rate and availability of new hardware and
related software, industry competition, rapid changes in technology and
industry standards, protection of proprietary rights, litigation against
Activision Publishing, maintenance of relationships with key personnel,
customers, vendors and third-party developers, domestic and international
economic, financial and political conditions and policies, foreign exchange
rates, integration of recent acquisitions and the identification of
suitable future acquisition opportunities, Activision Blizzard's success in
integrating the operations of Activision Publishing and Vivendi Games, and
Activision Publishing's success in integrating the operations of Activision
Publishing and FreeStyleGames, in a timely manner, or at all, and the
combined companies' ability to realize the anticipated benefits and
synergies of the transaction to the extent, or in the timeframe,
anticipated. Other such factors include additional risk factors identified
in Activision Blizzard's most recent annual report on Form 10-K and any
subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements
in this release are based upon information available to Activision
Publishing and Activision Blizzard as of the date of this release, and
neither Activision Publishing nor Activision Blizzard assumes any
obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking
statements believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be
incorrect. These statements are not guarantees of the future performance of
Activision Publishing or Activision Blizzard and are subject to risks,
uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond its control and
may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations.
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SOURCE Activision Publishing
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Related links:
http://www.activision.com
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/007396.html /
CONTACT:
Maryanne Lataif, Vice President, Corporate
Communications, +1-310-255-2704, mlataif@activision.com, or
Kristin Mulvihill Southey, Vice President, Investor Relations &
Treasurer, +1-310-255-2635, ksouthey@activision.com, both of
Activision Blizzard, Inc.
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