Activision Blizzard opens movie studio to create films and TV shows based on its games

Activision Blizzard has finally gone Hollywood. The world’s No. 2 video game publisher is announcing today the launch of Activision Blizzard Studios, a new in-house film and television studio devoted to creating original movies and TV shows based on the company’s video games.

In doing so, the company has embraced the “transmedia” strategy of extending content to different entertainment media. And Activision Blizzard has some very good content, including game brands Call of Duty, Skylanders, Diablo, Hearthstone, and StarCraft. And if the company’s just-announced $5.9 billion acquisition of King goes through, it will soon own the Candy Crush Saga social mobile gaming brand and other properties as well. It’s a strategy to become a mammoth entertainment giant, with rivals such as Warner Bros. and Disney.