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    Activision acquires e-sports organizer Major League Gaming

    By SHOOTUpdated:No Comments17338 Views
    This June 13, 2013 file photo shows the Activision Blizzard Booth during the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

    By Derrik J. Lang, Entertainment Writer

    LOS ANGELES (AP) --

    Activision is adding a veteran e-sports organizer to its arsenal.

    "Call of Duty" publisher Activision Blizzard Inc. announced plans Monday to buy Major League Gaming in a move to push deeper into e-sports. The deal to purchase the 12-year-old competitive gaming organizer is reportedly worth $46 million.

    "Our acquisition of Major League Gaming's business furthers our plans to create the ESPN of e-sports," said Activision CEO Bobby Kotick in a statement.

    Under the deal, MLG will continue to produce competitions featuring games created by Activision and other publishers. The e-sports organizer will also continue to operate the online broadcast network MLG.tv and be led by MLG co-founder and CEO Sundance DiGiovanni.

    The announcement comes after months of several high-profile hires and acquisitions by Activision.

    Activision hired MLG co-founder Mike Sepso and former ESPN and NFL Network executive Steve Bornstein last year.

    In October, Activision unveiled plans to shift an annual "Call of Duty " tournament to a year-round international league, as well as increase the prize pool from $1 to $3 million

    The Santa Monica, Calif.-based company, which also publishers the "Skylanders" and "Guitar Hero" franchises, said 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.

    The competitive gaming genre draws tens of millions of spectators online and in person. Last year, a report released by research firm Newzoo said 205 million people watched e-sports in 2014.

    Tags:Activision BlizzardMajor League Gaming



    Christmas TV movies are in their Taylor Swift era, with 2 Swift-inspired films airing this season

    Friday, November 22, 2024
    This image released by Hallmark Media shows Hunter King, left, and Tyler Hynes in a scene from "Holiday Touchdown: A Chiefs Love Story. (Joshua Haines/Hallmark Media via AP)

    Two new Christmas TV movies have a Taylor Swift connection that her fans would have no problem decoding.

    "Christmas in the Spotlight" debuts Saturday on Lifetime. It stars Jessica Lord as the world's biggest pop star and Laith Wallschleger as a pro football player, who meet and fall in love — not unlike Swift and her boyfriend, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.

    "It's clearly inspired by Taylor and Travis, but I don't know them and I don't know what is going on behind the scenes. I only know what's been put out there," said Eirene Tran Donohue, a longtime, devoted fan who jumped at the opportunity to write a script even loosely based on her favorite musician.

    She was inspired by the couple's support of each other's accomplishments, particularly Kelce's ease with dating the star despite the glare of the spotlight, adding, "I love the way that he celebrates her."

    Tran Donohue wants fellow Swift fans to know she wrote the script with them in mind.

    "There are so many Easter eggs," she said of little details added that a Swift fan would pick up on. "I put in as many as I could."

    Then, on Nov. 30, Hallmark will air "Holiday Touchdown: A Chiefs Love Story." Instead of a nod to Swift, it's an ode to family traditions and bonding, like rooting for a sports team. Hallmark's headquarters is also in Kansas City, so it makes sense why the company chose the Chiefs to be highlighted.

    In this story, written by Julie Sherman Wolfe, sparks fly when a new employee for the Chiefs organization (Tyler Hynes) meets a woman — played by Hunter King — whose family's dedication to the team goes back generations.

    Sherman Wolfe, a San Francisco 49ers fan, said she got the call a week after Super Bowl LVIII, when the Chiefs... Read More

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