Per sources talking to the Wall Street Journal, Kotick made the comments in a meeting with executives last week, and though he never promised to step down, the first hints at him resigning from the role of CEO have been planted. This follows both PlayStation and Xbox bosses announcing their intentions to re-evaluate their relationship with Activision Blizzard following the company’s ongoing trouble with state and federal agencies over its culture of mistreating women, discrimination and protecting abusers. As well as broader issues at Activision Blizzard, Kotick himself has been the subject of controversy following a major Wall Street Journal expose that accused the CEO of knowing about the myriad allegations against abusers in his company and keeping that information from investors. As per the report, Kotick has himself interfered with an internal investigation to stop a high-ranking employee from being fired. Though the Activision Blizzard board still stands behind Kotick, and increasing number of investors and developers at the studio are calling for his resignation. An employee group for Activision Blizzard King workers, A Better ABK, has already staged a walkout in protest to the new allegations, and has called for Kotick’s resignation. To combat future issues at the company, Actvision has plans to take on workplace abuse and improve its hiring practices.
