Editing Blizzard Entertainment (section)

=== Challenges with NetEase and Microsoft acquisition (2022–present) ===
Ahead of their license renewal in January 2023, Blizzard (via Activision Blizzard) and NetEase stated in November 2022 that they had been unable to come to an agreement on the renewal terms for their license, and thus most Blizzard games will cease operations in China in January 2023 until the situation can be resolved.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.theverge.com/2022/11/17/23463818/blizzard-netease-china-hearthstone-diablo-world-of-warcraft-unavailable | title = Blizzard will suspend World of Warcraft in China because of licensing dispute | first = Ash | last = Parrish | date = November 17, 2022 | access-date = November 17, 2022 | work = [[The Verge]] }}</ref> According to a report by ''[[The New York Times]]'', several factors influenced Activision Blizzard's decision to terminate the agreement, which included stronger demands made by the Chinese government to know of Activision Blizzard's internal business matters, NetEase's desire to license the games directly rather than run the license through a joint venture, and Activision Blizzard's concerns that NetEase was trying to start their own ventures, including the {{USD|100 million|long=no}} payment towards Bungie in 2018. NetEase was further concerned about the impact of the pending acquisition of Activision Blizzard by [[Microsoft]]. Activision Blizzard stated they were looking to other Chinese firms as replacements for NetEase as to restore their games in China.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/29/technology/activision-netease-china-breakup.html | title = Rift Between Gaming Giants Shows Toll of China's Economic Crackdown | first1 = Kellen | last1 = Browning | first2 = Chang | last2 = Che | date = March 29, 2023 | access-date = April 1, 2023 | work = [[The New York Times]] }}</ref> By April 2024, Blizzard, with Microsoft's help, and NetEase had agreed to new publishing terms, with plans to bring back Blizzard's games to China by mid-2024, maintaining all prior game ownership from the original publishing deal. Under this new deal, NetEase also will be able to bring games to the Xbox platform.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Huang |first=Jiahui |title=Blizzard Videogames to Return to China in New Deal With NetEase |url=https://www.wsj.com/tech/blizzard-videogames-to-return-to-china-in-new-deal-with-netease-ecc79180 |access-date=2024-04-10 |work=WSJ |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Yang |first1=George |title=Blizzard Games to Return to China Under New Agreement With NetEase |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/blizzard-games-to-return-to-china-under-new-agreement-with-netease |website=IGN |language=en |date=10 April 2024}}</ref>

Following completion of the acquisition, Microsoft announced it was laying off 1,900 staff from [[Microsoft Gaming]] on January 25, 2024. Alongside this, Blizzard President Mike Ybarra and Chief Design Officer Allen Adham announced they would be leaving the company. Further, the planned survival game from Blizzard was canceled.<ref name="verge jan2024 layoffs">{{Cite web |last=Warren |first=Tom |date=2024-01-25 |title=Microsoft lays off 1,900 Activision Blizzard and Xbox employees |url=https://www.theverge.com/2024/1/25/24049050/microsoft-activision-blizzard-layoffs |access-date=2024-01-29 |website=The Verge |language=en}}</ref> On January 29, 2024, Johanna Faries, the former general manager of the ''[[Call of Duty]]'' series, was named Blizzard Entertainment's new president, taking office on February 5.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Partis |first=Danielle |date=2021-04-26 |title=Johanna Faries named new Call of Duty general manager |url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/johanna-faries-named-new-call-of-duty-general-manager |access-date=2024-01-29 |website=GamesIndustry.biz |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theverge.com/2024/1/29/24054600/blizzard-has-a-new-president |title=Blizzard has a new president. |first=Emma |last=Roth |date=January 29, 2024 |website=[[The Verge]] |access-date=January 29, 2024}}</ref>

{{Main|Microsoft and unions#Activision Blizzard}}

Following the [[unionization]] success of [[Raven Software]]'s [[Game Workers Alliance]] (GWA) union for [[Software testing|quality assurance (QA) testers]], the 20-member QA team of [[Blizzard Albany]] announced a unionization drive in July 2022 as GWA Albany.<ref>{{cite web |last=Parrish |first=Ash |date=July 19, 2022 |title=Blizzard QA workers in Albany are organizing Activision's second union |url=https://www.theverge.com/2022/7/19/23270108/blizzard-qa-workers-union-activision-gwa-albany-vicarious-visions |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801055231/https://www.theverge.com/2022/7/19/23270108/blizzard-qa-workers-union-activision-gwa-albany-vicarious-visions |archive-date=August 1, 2022 |access-date=August 1, 2022 |website=[[The Verge]]}}</ref> The vote passed (14–0).<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Carpenter |first1=Nicole |date=2022-12-02 |title=Blizzard Albany becomes second unionized studio at Activision Blizzard |url=https://www.polygon.com/23490063/activision-blizzard-albany-qa-union-vote-win |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230126175937/https://www.polygon.com/23490063/activision-blizzard-albany-qa-union-vote-win |archive-date=January 26, 2023 |access-date=2023-02-11 |work=[[Polygon (website)|Polygon]] |language=en-US |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

On July 24, 2024, 500 artists, designers, engineers, producers, and quality assurance testers who work on ''World of Warcraft'' voted to unionize under the [[Communications Workers of America]].<ref name="wow-union">{{Cite news |last=Eidelson |first=Josh |date=2024-07-24 |title=Microsoft's 'World of Warcraft' Gaming Staff Votes to Unionize |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-07-24/world-of-warcraft-unionizes-growing-foothold-at-microsoft-s-activision-blizzard |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240724224238/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-07-24/world-of-warcraft-unionizes-growing-foothold-at-microsoft-s-activision-blizzard |archive-date=July 24, 2024 |access-date=2024-07-24 |work=[[Bloomberg.com]] |language=en}}</ref> The same day, 60 QA testers at Blizzard's Austin office, who work on various games including ''[[Diablo IV]]'' and ''[[Hearthstone]]'', also voted to unionize and formed the union "Texas Blizzard QA United-CWA."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Valentine |first=Rebekah |date=2024-07-24 |title=World of Warcraft's Entire Development Team Has Officially Unionized |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/world-of-warcrafts-entire-development-team-has-officially-unionized |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240806080210/https://www.ign.com/articles/world-of-warcrafts-entire-development-team-has-officially-unionized |archive-date=August 6, 2024 |access-date=2024-08-05 |website=[[IGN]] |language=en}}</ref> The following year, in May 2025, the members of Blizzard Team 4, who work on the game ''Overwatch 2'', also unionized with the Communications Workers of America, with nearly 200 game developers forming the wall-to-wall union "Overwatch Gamemakers Guild-CWA."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gach |first=Ethan |date=2025-05-09 |title=Blizzard's Overwatch Team Just Unionized: 'What I Want To Protect Most Here Is The People' |url=https://kotaku.com/overwatch-2-blizzard-team-4-union-microsoft-1851779922 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250509185223/https://kotaku.com/overwatch-2-blizzard-team-4-union-microsoft-1851779922 |archive-date=2025-05-09 |access-date=2025-05-09 |website=[[Kotaku]] |language=en}}</ref>