Although its probably going to come as no surprise considering the brands and properties under its collective wing, Activision Blizzard is reporting that a strong first fiscal quarter for 2012, exceeding their expectations.
Blizzard Entertainment’s World of Warcraft is still the number one subscription based MMORPG with Approximately 10.2 Million Subscribers as of the end of March and Blizzard’s forthcoming Diablo 3 has set an all time pre-order record for the company. In addition, Call of Duty Elite now has over 10 million registered users including over 2 million annual premium members as of the end of April.
Bobby Kotick, Chief Executive Officer, Activision Blizzard is quoted as saying “Our better-than-expected first-quarter performance was driven by global consumer demand for Activision Publishing’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, and Skylanders Spyro’s Adventures, as well as Blizzard Entertainment’s World of Warcraft which remains the #1 subscription-based MMORPG in the world. Through March 31, players have logged more than 1.6 billion hours of online gameplay of Activision Publishing’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3…”
2012 is a big year for Activision Blizzard, with the highly anticipated Diablo 3 already setting pre-order records and set to launch on May 15, a new expansion for World of Warcraft, Mists of Pandaria set to debut later this year and of course the continued success of the Call of Duty franchise and the premium Call of Duty Elite service.