- Vietnam's young coffee entrepreneurs brew up a revolution
- Trump rallies at site of failed assassination: 'Never quit'
- Too hot by day, Dubai's floodlit beaches are packed at night
- Is music finally reckoning with #MeToo?
- Fans hail Trump's 'guts' as he returns to site of rally shooting
- Lebanon state media says 'very violent' Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Guardians maul Tigers, miracle Mets rally in MLB series openers
- Lebanon state media says Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Miami on track for MLS record points after win in Toronto
- Madrid beat Villarreal but Carvajal suffers knee injury
- Madrid beat Villarreal to move level with Liga leaders Barcelona
- Monaco take top spot in Ligue 1 with win at Rennes
- French rugby player on rape charge whistled but 'serene' on return
- Madrid beat Villarreal to level Liga leaders Barca
- Thuram treble fires Inter past Torino and up to second
- 'Fight': defiant Trump jets in to site of rally shooting
- Toddler among 3 dead in migrant Channel crossings
- Mexico City's new mayor sworn in with pledges on water, housing
- Israel on alert ahead of Hamas attack anniversary
- Guardians maul Tigers in MLB playoff series opener
- Macron criticises Israel on Gaza, Lebanon operations
- French rugby player whistled but 'serene' on return amid ongoing rape case
- Kovacic stars as Man City sink Fulham to get title bid back on track
- Retegui hat-trick fires five-star Atalanta to hammering of Genoa
- Heavyweights Australia, England off to World Cup winning starts
- Visiting UN refugee agency chief decries 'terrible crisis' in Lebanon
- Spinners come to party as England defeat Bangladesh at T20 World Cup
- Search continues for missing in deadly Bosnia floods
- Man City sink Fulham to get title bid back on track
- France's Auradou whistled on Pau return in Perpignan loss amid ongoing rape case
- A 'forgotten' valley in storm-hit North Carolina, desperate for help
- Arsenal hit back in style after Southampton scare
- Thousands march for Palestinians ahead of Oct 7 anniversary
- Hezbollah heir apparent Safieddine out of contact after strikes
- Liverpool stay top of Premier League as Arsenal, Man City win
- In dank Tour of Emilia, Pogacar shines in rainbow jersey
- DR Congo launches mpox vaccination drive, hoping to curb outbreak
- Trump returns to site of failed assassination
- Careless Leverkusen held to Bundesliga draw
- O'Brien's 'superstar' Kyprios posts landmark win on Arc weekend
- Toddler crushed to death in migrant Channel crossing
- Liverpool suffer Alisson injury blow
- Habosi helps Racing beat Vannes before Auradou's playing return
- Thousands march in London in support of Palestinians, 1 year after Oct 7
- Israel readying response to Iran missile attack
- Schutt, Mooney help Australia beat Sri Lanka in Women's T20 World Cup
- Liverpool extend Premier League lead with win at Palace
- Djokovic 'shakes rust off' to make third round of Shanghai Masters
- 'Imperfect' PSG fighting on all fronts - Luis Enrique
- Struggling Pakistan look to thwart adaptable England
Bobby Kotick: Embattled Activision CEO faces uncertain future
Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick built a video game empire with flagship titles like "World of Warcraft", but he could lose control of it after a whopping Microsoft buyout deal announced Tuesday.
As Activision has been ensnared in allegations that the firm discriminated against women employees, he has weathered calls to step down from some of his workers and critics.
But once the $69 billion deal is finalized by mid-2023, he is expected to depart, the Wall Street Journal reports.
The running scandal -- which has prompted ugly headlines, vows of company reform and an apology from Kotick himself -- follows decades of success in business.
Legend has it that part of Kotick's destiny was laid out by Apple founder and tech legend Steve Jobs one day in 1983.
Jobs advised him to leave the University of Michigan, where he was an art student, to become an entrepreneur, Kotick has said.
It was the start of a life in business for the native of Long Island, a suburb of New York City, who while still in high school made cash by running parties at night clubs for his fellow teenagers.
The young man convinced casino magnate Steve Wynn to write him a check to start developing a cheap graphical interface for Apple, in partnership with a friend, Howard Marks, the project's programmer.
An old-fashioned entrepreneur, Kotick differs from many big names in computing and video games, more interested in business than in the technology.
- Big pay day -
According to Forbes, he even believed in the 1980s that playing video games was a waste of time.
After trying to buy the microcomputer giant Commodore in 1987, he managed to get his hands on Activision, on the verge of bankruptcy, in 1991, for a pittance.
He restructured the company, raised new money and changed its strategy.
The idea was to integrate small studios without absorbing them, in order to give them the necessary latitude to create and develop original content.
This was the logic behind the merger with Vivendi Games, which included Blizzard, and the acquisition of King, creator of the hugely successful "Candy Crush".
This hands-off philosophy -- alongside an old school management style dominated by often white men -- bears some of the elements that have been cited by critics and officials.
In July, California state regulators accused the company of condoning a culture of harassment, a toxic work environment and inequality.
"Male employees proudly come into work hungover, play video games for long periods of time during work while delegating their responsibilities to female employees," the California state suit says.
Kotick issued an apology on behalf of the company, implemented a "zero tolerance" policy, while dozens of employees were sanctioned or fired, including Blizzard president J. Allen Brack.
But these concessions have not managed to calm his critics, and nearly 20 percent of employees have signed a petition demanding his departure, in line with several major investors.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the 58-year-old executive, whose fortune is estimated at several hundred million dollars, had been aware for several years of reports of harassment, but sought not to publicize these incidents rather than take the problem head on.
Assured of remaining as head of the group at least until the acquisition is finalized, he could then leave with a huge check, which American media estimated at around $300 million.
O.M.Souza--AMWN