LOS ANGELES (AP) – “Call of Duty” publisher Activision Blizzard Inc. is buying Major League Gaming in a move to push deeper into e-sports.
The video game maker announced plans Monday to purchase the 12-year-old competitive gaming organizer. The deal is reportedly worth $46 million.
Activision CEO Bobby Kotick says in a statement that the acquisition will create “the ESPN of e-sports.”
MLG will continue to produce competitions featuring games created by Activision and other publishers under the deal.
The announcement comes after Activision announced in November it was acquiring “Candy Crush Saga” publisher King Entertainment for $5.9 billion and planning to create its own film and TV series based on Activision Blizzard franchises.