A few figures
It is often said that money is the lifeblood of war, and Activision Blizzard is no exception to the rule. Here are the figures to know about the different sectors, what they reported and the benefits generated (source). Keep in mind that we are only talking about the second quarter of 2019 (from April to June):
- Activision recorded $268 million in revenue, generating $55 million in profits. These revenues are down compared to last year at the same period, but the group still owned the Destiny franchise. On the other hand, Activision can thank Call of Duty's revenues in-game and the successful launch of Crash Team Racing: Nitro Refueled to explain these figures.
- Blizzard recorded $384 million in revenue, generating $75 million in profits. Once again, these revenues are down compared to last year at the same period and show a lower investment by players in in-game purchases.
- King recorded $499 million in revenue, generating $171 million in profits. These figures are roughly equivalent to those of last year at the same period.
Despite some declines, figures are higher than the forecast announced for 2019: a total of $1.4 billion compared to an estimate of $1.32 billion.
The main ideas
- The development teams at Hearthstone, Overwatch, Diablo, Warcraft, Candy Crush and Call of Duty are still expanding and content creation will be boosted. This should lead to the expansion of the different communities present on these games, but above all to please players.
- This increase was felt this quarter on the main franchises, which made it possible to generate higher than expected revenues.
- The number of monthly players is a total of 327 million (including 258 million for King alone with mainly Candy Crush). Blizzard stagnated at 32 million and Activision recorded 37 million.
- King and its popular Candy Crush franchise are still on the rise: the time spent on the game is increasing, as are the purchases ingame. The arrival of Candy Crush Friends Saga contributed significantly to this increase. Franchising is a huge success, especially in the USA.
- The release of Crash Team Racing: Nitro Fueled delighted critics and was very well received by the community.
Key licenses
- The number of players has increased again since mid-May and the announcement of patch 8.2 and Wow Classic.
- The number of players is stable on a quarter-to-quarter basis, with an increase since the release of the Workshop.
- The number of hours of viewing of the Overwatch League has increased compared to the second quarter of last year.
- Since last season, the total number of viewers and the average viewing time of the Overwatch League has increased by at least 10%.
- The number of players and their in-game purchases have increased since last year on Call of Duty Black Ops 4 (compared to World War II), thanks to new in-game features.
- Players spend 50% more time on Call of Duty Black Ops 4 than on World War II. The number of hours played has increased by more than 10% in total.
- The Call of Duty World League recorded a 50% growth compared to last year.
- The number of players and in-game purchases have increased since the release of Rise of Shadows and the new solo mode.
- The group sees great opportunities ahead for the CCG, particularly with a competitive mode of such a high level on the international scene.
Computer graphics
Find below computer graphics released by Activision Blizzard for the second quarter of 2019.
