Feb 26, 2019 · 34m · a16z
a16z Podcast | Gaming Goes Mainstream
0:00 / 0:00
▶ Watch on YouTube →
gold bands on the timeline = statements, start to end. Hover to read, click to jump. CC turns on captions
In this episode of the a16z Podcast, Marc Andreessen interviews Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick about his career in technology, the corporate history of Activision Blizzard, and the evolution of gaming into a global social and economic powerhouse.
How this conversation actually went
Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. The host holds 2.7% of the talking time here. How this is scored →
The host as informed peer 3.2 Guest teaching 3.2 Guest disagreement 0.7 The host pushing back 0.7
speaking balance: gold is the host, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 26:40 Bobby rejects Olympic gaming implication
When Marc suggests that esports entering the Olympics is a logical extension of current trends, Bobby directly disagrees, explaining that commercial IP rights make it impossible for the Olympics.
Hardest push from the host ▶ 16:48 Marc questions giving up majority controlMarc pushes back on the strategic framing of the Vivendi deal, questioning why a founder-CEO like Bobby would take on the massive risk of ceding majority 51 percent ownership.
Biggest teaching moment ▶ 20:30 Bobby redefines gaming through Mandela's lensBobby elevates the conversation beyond typical industry metrics by educating the audience on how gaming matches Nelson Mandela's definition of sport as a universal equalizer.
The host holds their own ▶ 6:00 Marc details Activision's Atari originsMarc demonstrates deep tech history knowledge by explaining how four top Atari engineers split off in 1980 to invent the third-party game development industry model.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
| Chapter | Topic | The host as informed peer | Guest teaching | Guest disagreement | The host pushing back | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bobby Kotick's Origin Story and Meeting Steve Jobs | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | Marc sets up the interview with friendly rapport and demonstrates tech history knowledge by clarifying details like the Apple Lisa and the 1983 timeline. Bobby shares personal anecdotes about meeting Steve Jobs and launching early software. The tone is entirely collaborative and conversational. | |
| Acquiring Activision and Early Turnaround Efforts | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | Marc demonstrates strong domain knowledge of gaming history by detailing Activision's founding in 1980 as the first third-party developer split from Atari. Bobby expands with details about Commodore, Black Monday in 1987, and buying a stake in the insolvent company. | |
| The Vivendi Merger and Acquiring Blizzard | 4 | 3 | 1 | 3 | Marc probes the strategic deal with Vivendi, challenging Bobby on why he was willing to sign over majority 51 percent control of Activision. Bobby explains his rationale, noting Vivendi knew little about gaming and was unlikely to intervene. | |
| The Global Expansion and Social Transformation of Gaming | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | This segment consists almost entirely of a monologue by Bobby explaining the global reach and social transformation of modern gaming. Marc stays completely silent as Bobby invokes Nelson Mandela's definition of sport to explain esports. | |
| Esports, Spectator Dynamics, and City-Based Leagues | 3 | 4 | 3 | 1 | Marc asks thoughtful questions about esports spectator dynamics and game design evolution. When Marc suggests that gaming in the Olympics is a logical outcome, Bobby explicitly pushes back, arguing that Olympics cannot support commercial IP. | |
| Managing Player Communities and Industry Innovations | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | Marc cites precise market intelligence regarding Pokemon Go's monthly revenue run rate to discuss industry persistence. Bobby breaks down game design paradigms like serialized content models and physical hardware innovations. |
Statements from this episode (15)
Kotick built an Apple II GUI suite a year before Mac launched
“So we designed this mouse and a word processor and a spreadsheet and a database All for the Apple II with a graphical user interface about a year before the Macintosh was released.”
Steve Jobs threatened to cancel Apple's contract unless Kotick dropped out
“I will rip, and I can't say the word, I will rip this effing contract up right now if you don't quit college. So I quit the next day.”
Activision was history's first third-party video game developer
“Activision, I believe this is correct, was the first third-party developer of video games.”
Kotick bought a 25% stake in Activision for $440,000 in 1990
“So I bought a 25% stake in Activision for 440,000 dollars, and I became the largest shareholder.”
Building a WoW competitor internally would have cost $1B and seven years
“And we looked at it and said, if we even could figure out how to do it would take us Five, six, seven years, and a billion dollars, and the likelihood is we wouldn't do a good job of it”
Activision offered up to $7B to buy Blizzard standalone from Vivendi
“And I asked them to sell us Blizzard, and we didn't have any interest in the rest of their games business, but we wanted Blizzard. And they said no repeatedly, and we offered them four billion, and then five billion, and then six billion, and then seven billio…”
Activision traded a 51% stake for Blizzard and $2B in cash
“We'll stay a public company, you sell us Blizzard, or give us Blizzard and two billion of cash, and we'll give you 51% of the company.”
Activision Blizzard serves 400 million customers across 196 countries
“Today, we sell in a 196 countries around the world. We have four hundred million customers and anyone in any socioeconomic strata can actually play games.”
Video games will eventually become as popular as traditional sports
“Video games is the only competitive medium that is going to give me that experience, and that purpose, and that sense of belonging, and that camaraderie that you get from sport. And so of course it's going to be as popular as sport, if not more popular as spor…”
StarCraft reached 5 million registered players in South Korea at its peak
“The height of its popularity in Korea, StarCraft had five million registered players.”
Fortnite was the first game where spectating drove viewers to play
“Fortnite, I think, was the first game where people would spectate, and it would actually be a catalyst for them to play.”
Sports succeed primarily due to tribalism and local affiliation
“The reason why sports are so successful is tribalism and that having a local affiliation was so crucial to the success of sport.”
Esports will never join the Olympics due to commercial ownership conflicts
“I actually don't think, like, the Olympics has never been about a commercial enterprise, and so if you think of the analog, right, there's not, like, if you had to pick a game, You're now endorsing someone's commercial enterprise.”