Page 26 - 2012 Annual Report

VIVENDI l 2012 l Annual Report 26
GROUP PROFILE – BUSINESSES – LITIGATION – RISK FACTORS 1
1
SECTION 2 - BUSINESSES
ACTIVISION BLIZZARD
✱ On March 20, Blizzard Entertainment renewed the license arrangement
entered into with NetEase for the operation of World of Warcraft in
mainland China.
✱ On April 5, 2012, the Skylanders franchise came to the App Store with
Skylanders Cloud Patrol™ for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.
✱ On May 15, Blizzard Entertainment launched Diablo III , the next-
chapter in its successful franchise. Within the first 24 hours of its
release, more than 3.5 million copies had been sold, setting the new
all-time record for fastest-selling PC game.
✱ On July 3, Activision Blizzard and Tencent, a leading ISP in China,
announced a long-term multi-year agreement to bring Call of Duty
Online to Chinese game players.
✱ On September 25, Blizzard Entertainment announced the release of
World of Warcraft® : Mists of Pandaria™, the fourth expansion to
World of Warcraft .
✱ On October 19, Activision Blizzard launched Skylanders: Giants™, the
second title in its Skylanders franchise.
✱ On October 26, Activision Blizzard released Cabela’s Dangerous Hunts
2013™, from its Cabela’s franchise.
✱ On November 13, Activision Blizzard launched Call of Duty: Black
Ops II. It was the biggest entertainment launch of all time.
During 2012, Activision released the following games, among others:
The Amazing Spider-Man™; Transformers™ : Fall of Cybertron™; 007™
Legends; Wipeout 3 and two games from the Cabela’s franchise: Cabela’s
Dangerous Hunts 2013 and Cabela’s Hunting Expeditions.
In North America and Europe combined Activision Publishing was the
#1 console and handheld publisher for the year 2012 with the #1 and
#3 best-selling franchises Call of Duty and Skylanders (including toys
and accessories). Additionally, for the year 2012, in aggregate across
all platforms in the United States and Europe, Activision Publishing’s
Call of Duty: Black Ops II was the #1 best-selling title in dollars
and Modern Warfare 3® was the #9 best-selling title in dollars.
Skylanders Giants was the #5 best-selling game in dollars, and
Skylanders Spyro’s Adventure® was the #4 best-selling game in dollars.
As of December 31, 2012, the Skylanders franchise had generated,
life-to-date, more than $1 billion in worldwide sales (according to
The NPD Group, GfK Chart-Track and Activision Blizzard internal
estimates). As of January 2013, Activision has sold more than 100 million
Skylanders toys worldwide (according to Activision Blizzard internal
estimates).
2.3.4. 2012 Highlights
2.3.3. Blizzard Entertainment
Since 2004, when Blizzard Entertainment first launched its subscription
based MMORPG: World of Warcraft , the franchise has experienced
significant sequential growth. The company launched several expansion
packs: The Burning Crusade®, Wrath of the Lich King®, Cataclysm®, and
Mists of Pandaria® in September 2012. World of Warcraft® : Mists of
Pandaria™ sold approximately 2.7 million copies as of its first week of
release. Additionally, on October 2, 2012, World of Warcraft® : Mists of
Pandaria™ was released in China, marking what the company believes
to be the first time any game has officially released in China as part of a
global launch.
Today, World of Warcraft is available in North America, Europe (including
Russia), China, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Chile,
Argentina, Southeast Asia and the regions of Taiwan, Hong Kong and
Macau. In the Asian market, Blizzard distributes World of Warcraft directly
through its local subsidiaries, partners and license agreements. In 2012,
Blizzard extended its license agreement with NetEase.com, Inc. for the
operation of World of Warcraft in China. In addition, Blizzard granted a
license to NetEase for the operation in China of StarCraft® II: Wings of
Liberty®, Warcraft® III: Reign of Chaos® and Warcraft® III: The Frozen
Throne®.
StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty is the fastest-selling strategy game of
all time. Within 48 hours after its release in 2010, it sold more than
1.5 million copies. More than 3 million units were sold within the first
month (based on internal company records, public data, or reports from
key distribution partners).
Simultaneously with the release of StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty , Blizzard
launched a new version of its online gaming service, Battle.net, evolving it
into the industry’s premier online gaming destination for Blizzard gamers.
In addition to StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty and World of Warcraft ,
battle.net will power Blizzard’s subsequent new releases in the future,
and is designed to keep players connected to their friends independently
from whatever Blizzard game they are playing. The service offers players
advanced communications features, social networking, player matching
and digital content delivery, which enables a unique, connected experience
for millions of players across multiple brands.
On May 15, 2012, Blizzard Entertainment released Diablo® III, which set a
new industry launch record for PC games.
For the calendar year, Blizzard Entertainment had two top-10 PC games in
North America and Europe. Diablo III was the #1 best-selling PC game at
retail, breaking PC-game sales records with more than 12 million copies
sold worldwide through December 31, 2012, and World of Warcraft® :
Mists of Pandaria™ was the #3 best-selling PC game at retail (according
to The NPD Group, GfK Chart-Track and Activision Blizzard internal
estimates).
As of December 31, 2012, Blizzard Entertainment’s World of Warcraft
remains the #1 subscription-based MMORPG, with more than 9.6 million
subscribers (according to Activision Blizzard internal estimates).