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Vivendi Games

January 01, 1970

Vivendi Games was an American video game publisher and holding company based in Los Angeles. It was founded in 1996 as CUC Software, the publishing subsidiary of CUC International, after the latter acquired video game companies Davidson & Associates and Sierra On-Line. Between 1997 and 2001, the company switched parents and names multiple times before ending up organized under Vivendi Universal (later renamed Vivendi). On July 10, 2008, Vivendi Games merged with Activision to create Activision Blizzard.

Vivendi Games
Vivendi Universal Games' headquarters at 6080 Center Drive in Los Angeles in 2001
Formerly
  • CUC Software
  • (1996–1997)
  • Cendant Software
  • (1997–1998)
  • Havas Interactive
  • (1998–2001)
  • Vivendi Universal Interactive Publishing
  • (2001)
  • Vivendi Universal Games
  • (2001–2006)
Company typeDivision
IndustryVideo games
FoundedJuly 24, 1996; 27 years ago (1996-07-24) in Torrance, California
DefunctJuly 10, 2008; 15 years ago (2008-07-10)
FateMerged with Activision
SuccessorActivision Blizzard
Headquarters
Los Angeles
,
US
Area served
North America, Europe
Key people
Bruce Hack (CEO)
Parent

History edit

CUC/Cendant edit

On February 21, 1996, CUC International announced its intention to acquire Davidson & Associates (including Blizzard Entertainment) and Sierra On-Line, two American video game companies, in a US$1.8 billion stock swap.[1] The deal closed on July 24, 1996.[2] CUC International previously only operated membership shopping clubs, wherefore analysts were surprised by the company's move into the software industry.[1]

Subsequently, following the acquisitions, CUC International established CUC Software around the Torrance, California-based operations of Davidson & Associates to oversee the new video game properties.[3] Under that new umbrella, both Davidson & Associates and Sierra On-Line would act independently from CUC International.[4] Bob Davidson, co-founder of Davidson & Associates, became chairman and chief executive of the new establishment.[5] On November 5 that year, CUC International announced that they would additionally acquire Knowledge Adventure, another developer, in a stock deal valued between $50 million and US$100 million.[5] The acquisition was completed on February 3, 1997.[3] On February 10, Davidson announced that he had stepped down from his positions at CUC Software, and that his wife, Jan, ceased as president of Davidson & Associates, while both Davidsons stayed on CUC International's board of directors.[3] Christopher McLeod, an executive vice-president for CUC International, took over CUC Software in Bob Davidson's place.[3] In April 1997, CUC International acquired Berkeley Systems for an undisclosed sum.[6]

On May 28, 1997, CUC International announced plans to merge with Hospitality Franchise Systems to create a single, "one-stop" entity.[7][8] The merger was finalized in December that year and created Cendant.[9] As a result of the merger, CUC Software was renamed Cendant Software.[10]

Havas/Vivendi edit

On November 20, 1998, French media company Havas (acquired by Vivendi earlier that year) announced that it would acquire Cendant Software for $800 million in cash, with up to an additional $200 million contingent on its performance.[11][12] Subsequently, the division was renamed Havas Interactive.[13]

On May 16, 2001, Havas Interactive was renamed Vivendi Universal Interactive Publishing, while Havas itself became Vivendi Universal Publishing.[14] The new name was likely due to the merger between Universal and Vivendi; the company also received ownership of properties from Universal Interactive Studios. Under the new name, the company was split into two parts: Vivendi Universal Interactive Publishing North America and Vivendi Universal Interactive Publishing International, both of which took responsibility for their respective publishing regions.[14] On November 13, 2001, both parts were streamlined under the name Vivendi Universal Games.[15]

When Vivendi Universal sold all of its media operations to General Electric in October 2003, Vivendi Universal held on to Vivendi Universal Games, which was re-organized as a direct division of the conglomerate.[16] On March 3, 2006, with the sale completed, Vivendi Universal announced they would be dropping the "Universal" part of their name.[17] The same day, the company opened a mobile games division known as Vivendi Universal Games Mobile.[18]

Merger with Activision edit

In December 2007, American publisher Activision announced a proposed merger deal with Vivendi Games that would create a new holding company named Activision Blizzard.[19][20] The deal was approved by Activision's shareholders on July 8, 2008,[20] and the merger was finalized on July 10, creating Activision Blizzard while dissolving Vivendi Games.[21] Bruce Hack, who served as chief executive officer of Vivendi Games, became vice-chairman and chief corporate officer of the new company.[21] Many of Vivendi Games' properties were later dropped by Activision, citing that they would not make for a good fit for the company's long-term strategy.[22]

Subsidiaries edit

Publishers edit

Name Founded or acquired Ref.
Black Label Games August 2002 [23][24]
Fox Interactive March 2003[a] [25]
NDA Productions March 2002 [26][27]
Sierra Entertainment July 1996 [28]
Universal Interactive June 2000[b] [29][30]
Vivendi Games Mobile March 2006 [31]

Former edit

Centerscore September 2006 [32][33]

Developers edit

Name Founded or acquired Ref.
Blizzard Entertainment March 1994 [34]
Berkeley Systems April 1997 [35]
Davidson & Associates July 1996 [36]
High Moon Studios January 2006 [37]
Massive Entertainment October 2002 [38][39]
Radical Entertainment March 2005 [40][41]
Swordfish Studios June 2005 [42]
Wanako Games February 2007 [43][44][45]

Former edit

Games edit

Main article: List of Vivendi Games titles

Notes edit

  1. ^ Acquired from News Corporation in March 2003, became label.
  2. ^ Absorbed through the Vivendi–Universal merger in June 2000, became label.

References edit

  1. ^ a b Lewis, Peter H. (February 21, 1996). "CUC Will Buy 2 Software Companies for $1.8 Billion". The New York Times. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  2. ^ "CUC INTERNATIONAL INC. COMPLETES ACQUISITIONS OF DAVIDSON & ASSOCIATES, INC. AND SIERRA ON-LINE, INC". PR Newswire. July 24, 1996.
  3. ^ a b c d Kaplan, Karen (February 10, 1997). "Davidson Founders Make Quiet Exit". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  4. ^ Helm, Leslie (February 21, 1996). "Marketer CUC to Buy Davidson & Associates". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  5. ^ a b Kaplan, Karen (November 6, 1996). "CUC Will Buy Knowledge Adventure". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  6. ^ Quistgaard, Kaitlin (April 2, 1997). "CUC Buys Content Maker Berkeley Systems". Wired. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  7. ^ Bagli, Charles V. (May 28, 1997). "$11 Billion Merger Plan Would Join HFS and CUC". The New York Times. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  8. ^ "CUC-HFS Merger Deal to Create Strong One-Stop-Shopping Entity". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. May 28, 1997. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  9. ^ Jebens, Harley (April 28, 2000). "CUC Gets Renamed". gamespot.com. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  10. ^ "CUC Now Cendant". Game Developer. UBM TechWeb. March 1998. p. 13.
  11. ^ Hansell, Saul (November 20, 1998). "Cendant Said to Near Sale of Software Division". The New York Times. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  12. ^ "Cendant Sells Software Unit". Wired. November 20, 1998. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  13. ^ Rose, Frank (December 1, 2000). "Vivendi's High Wireless Act". Wired. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  14. ^ a b "Havas Interactive Changes Name To Vivendi". gamasutra.com. May 16, 2001. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  15. ^ Graser, Marc (November 15, 2001). "Viv U streamlines games". variety.com. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  16. ^ Fahey, Rob (October 8, 2003). "General Electric buys Vivendi media empire". gamesindustry.biz. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
  17. ^ Gibson, Ellie (March 3, 2006). "Vivendi Universal to shorten company name". gamesindustry.biz. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  18. ^ Maragos, Nich (March 3, 2006). "Gamasutra - The Art & Business of Making Games". gamasutra.com. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
  19. ^ Rosmarin, Rachel (December 2, 2007). "Vivendi To Merge With Activision". forbes.com. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  20. ^ a b Alexander, Leigh (July 8, 2008). "Activision Blizzard Merger Official". kotaku.com. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  21. ^ a b Alexander, Leigh (July 10, 2008). "Activision Blizzard Merger Finalized". kotaku.com. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  22. ^ Pattison, Narayan (July 29, 2008). "Activision Drops Several Vivendi Games". IGN.
  23. ^ Varanini, Giancarlo (August 13, 2002). "Vivendi creates new studio". gamespot.com. Retrieved July 22, 2018.
  24. ^ IGN Staff (August 13, 2002). "VU Creates Black Label Games". ign.com. Retrieved July 22, 2018.
  25. ^ Pham, Alex (March 11, 2003). "Fox Sells Video Game Division to Vivendi". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 22, 2018.
  26. ^ "Un nuovo team per Vivendi Universal". multiplayer.it (in Italian). March 27, 2002.
  27. ^ IGN Staff (November 13, 2002). "Europe Gets Hard Early". ign.com. Retrieved July 22, 2018.
  28. ^ Lewis, Peter H. (February 21, 1996). "CUC Will Buy 2 Software Companies for $1.8 Billion". The New York Times. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  29. ^ Stokes, Ian (June 26, 2018). . Kotaku UK. Archived from the original on July 21, 2018. Retrieved July 22, 2018.
  30. ^ Teather, David (June 19, 2000). "Vivendi seals merger". The Guardian. Retrieved July 22, 2018.
  31. ^ Maragos, Nich (March 3, 2006). "Gamasutra - The Art & Business of Making Games". gamasutra.com. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
  32. ^ "Vivendi acquires Centerscore". gamesindustry.biz. September 13, 2006. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
  33. ^ Dobson, Jason (September 12, 2006). "Vivendi Acquires Centerscore, Expands Mobile Portfolio". gamasutra.com. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
  34. ^ Takahashi, Dean (March 1, 1994). "Technology". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 22, 2018.
  35. ^ "2K Madrid". 2K Madrid. from the original on April 1, 2021. Retrieved April 30, 2021.
  36. ^ Lewis, Peter H. (February 21, 1996). "CUC Will Buy 2 Software Companies for $1.8 Billion". The New York Times. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  37. ^ Gibson, Ellie (January 6, 2006). "Vivendi Universal acquires High Moon Studios". gamesindustry.biz. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
  38. ^ "Vivendi Universal Publishing announces the acquisition of Massive Entertainment". bluesnews.com. October 3, 2002. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
  39. ^ Parker, Sam (October 3, 2002). "Vivendi Universal acquires Massive Entertainment". gamespot.com. Retrieved July 22, 2018.
  40. ^ Fahey, Rob (March 23, 2005). "VU Games acquires Simpsons: Hit & Run developer Radical Entertainment". gamesindustry.biz. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
  41. ^ Jenkins, David (March 23, 2005). "Vivendi Universal Acquires Simpsons: Hit & Run Developer". gamasutra.com. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
  42. ^ Fahey, Rob (June 15, 2005). "Vivendi nets Swordfish in new acquisition deal". gamesindustry.biz. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
  43. ^ Arendt, Susan (February 20, 2007). "Vivendi Acquires Assault Heroes Developer". Wired. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
  44. ^ Boyer, Brandon (February 20, 2007). "Vivendi Acquires Wanako Games". gamasutra.com. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
  45. ^ Kietzmann, Ludwig (February 20, 2007). "Vivendi acquires Wanako Games". engadget.com. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
  46. ^ Kaplan, Karen (February 10, 1997). "Davidson Founders Make Quiet Exit". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  47. ^ Fahey, Rob (October 6, 2004). "Vivendi Universal sells educational games division". gamesindustry.biz. Retrieved July 21, 2018.

January 01, 1970
vivendi, games, american, video, game, publisher, holding, company, based, angeles, founded, 1996, software, publishing, subsidiary, international, after, latter, acquired, video, game, companies, davidson, associates, sierra, line, between, 1997, 2001, compan. Vivendi Games was an American video game publisher and holding company based in Los Angeles It was founded in 1996 as CUC Software the publishing subsidiary of CUC International after the latter acquired video game companies Davidson amp Associates and Sierra On Line Between 1997 and 2001 the company switched parents and names multiple times before ending up organized under Vivendi Universal later renamed Vivendi On July 10 2008 Vivendi Games merged with Activision to create Activision Blizzard Vivendi GamesVivendi Universal Games headquarters at 6080 Center Drive in Los Angeles in 2001FormerlyCUC Software 1996 1997 Cendant Software 1997 1998 Havas Interactive 1998 2001 Vivendi Universal Interactive Publishing 2001 Vivendi Universal Games 2001 2006 Company typeDivisionIndustryVideo gamesFoundedJuly 24 1996 27 years ago 1996 07 24 in Torrance CaliforniaDefunctJuly 10 2008 15 years ago 2008 07 10 FateMerged with ActivisionSuccessorActivision BlizzardHeadquartersLos Angeles USArea servedNorth America EuropeKey peopleBruce Hack CEO ParentCUC International 1996 1997 Cendant 1997 1998 Vivendi Universal Publishing 1998 2003 Vivendi 2003 2008 Contents 1 History 1 1 CUC Cendant 1 2 Havas Vivendi 1 3 Merger with Activision 2 Subsidiaries 2 1 Publishers 2 2 Former 2 3 Developers 2 4 Former 3 Games 4 Notes 5 ReferencesHistory editCUC Cendant edit On February 21 1996 CUC International announced its intention to acquire Davidson amp Associates including Blizzard Entertainment and Sierra On Line two American video game companies in a US 1 8 billion stock swap 1 The deal closed on July 24 1996 2 CUC International previously only operated membership shopping clubs wherefore analysts were surprised by the company s move into the software industry 1 Subsequently following the acquisitions CUC International established CUC Software around the Torrance California based operations of Davidson amp Associates to oversee the new video game properties 3 Under that new umbrella both Davidson amp Associates and Sierra On Line would act independently from CUC International 4 Bob Davidson co founder of Davidson amp Associates became chairman and chief executive of the new establishment 5 On November 5 that year CUC International announced that they would additionally acquire Knowledge Adventure another developer in a stock deal valued between 50 million and US 100 million 5 The acquisition was completed on February 3 1997 3 On February 10 Davidson announced that he had stepped down from his positions at CUC Software and that his wife Jan ceased as president of Davidson amp Associates while both Davidsons stayed on CUC International s board of directors 3 Christopher McLeod an executive vice president for CUC International took over CUC Software in Bob Davidson s place 3 In April 1997 CUC International acquired Berkeley Systems for an undisclosed sum 6 On May 28 1997 CUC International announced plans to merge with Hospitality Franchise Systems to create a single one stop entity 7 8 The merger was finalized in December that year and created Cendant 9 As a result of the merger CUC Software was renamed Cendant Software 10 Havas Vivendi edit On November 20 1998 French media company Havas acquired by Vivendi earlier that year announced that it would acquire Cendant Software for 800 million in cash with up to an additional 200 million contingent on its performance 11 12 Subsequently the division was renamed Havas Interactive 13 On May 16 2001 Havas Interactive was renamed Vivendi Universal Interactive Publishing while Havas itself became Vivendi Universal Publishing 14 The new name was likely due to the merger between Universal and Vivendi the company also received ownership of properties from Universal Interactive Studios Under the new name the company was split into two parts Vivendi Universal Interactive Publishing North America and Vivendi Universal Interactive Publishing International both of which took responsibility for their respective publishing regions 14 On November 13 2001 both parts were streamlined under the name Vivendi Universal Games 15 When Vivendi Universal sold all of its media operations to General Electric in October 2003 Vivendi Universal held on to Vivendi Universal Games which was re organized as a direct division of the conglomerate 16 On March 3 2006 with the sale completed Vivendi Universal announced they would be dropping the Universal part of their name 17 The same day the company opened a mobile games division known as Vivendi Universal Games Mobile 18 Merger with Activision edit In December 2007 American publisher Activision announced a proposed merger deal with Vivendi Games that would create a new holding company named Activision Blizzard 19 20 The deal was approved by Activision s shareholders on July 8 2008 20 and the merger was finalized on July 10 creating Activision Blizzard while dissolving Vivendi Games 21 Bruce Hack who served as chief executive officer of Vivendi Games became vice chairman and chief corporate officer of the new company 21 Many of Vivendi Games properties were later dropped by Activision citing that they would not make for a good fit for the company s long term strategy 22 Subsidiaries editPublishers edit Name Founded or acquired Ref Black Label Games August 2002 23 24 Fox Interactive March 2003 a 25 NDA Productions March 2002 26 27 Sierra Entertainment July 1996 28 Universal Interactive June 2000 b 29 30 Vivendi Games Mobile March 2006 31 Former edit Centerscore September 2006 32 33 Developers edit Name Founded or acquired Ref Blizzard Entertainment March 1994 34 Berkeley Systems April 1997 35 Davidson amp Associates July 1996 36 High Moon Studios January 2006 37 Massive Entertainment October 2002 38 39 Radical Entertainment March 2005 40 41 Swordfish Studios June 2005 42 Wanako Games February 2007 43 44 45 Former edit Knowledge Adventure February 1997 46 47 Coktel Vision 1996Games editMain article List of Vivendi Games titlesNotes edit Acquired from News Corporation in March 2003 became label Absorbed through the Vivendi Universal merger in June 2000 became label References edit a b Lewis Peter H February 21 1996 CUC Will Buy 2 Software Companies for 1 8 Billion The New York Times Retrieved July 20 2018 CUC INTERNATIONAL INC COMPLETES ACQUISITIONS OF DAVIDSON amp ASSOCIATES INC AND SIERRA ON LINE INC PR Newswire July 24 1996 a b c d Kaplan Karen February 10 1997 Davidson Founders Make Quiet Exit Los Angeles Times Retrieved July 20 2018 Helm Leslie February 21 1996 Marketer CUC to Buy Davidson amp Associates Los Angeles Times Retrieved July 20 2018 a b Kaplan Karen November 6 1996 CUC Will Buy Knowledge Adventure Los Angeles Times Retrieved July 20 2018 Quistgaard Kaitlin April 2 1997 CUC Buys Content Maker Berkeley Systems Wired Retrieved July 20 2018 Bagli Charles V May 28 1997 11 Billion Merger Plan Would Join HFS and CUC The New York Times Retrieved July 20 2018 CUC HFS Merger Deal to Create Strong One Stop Shopping Entity Los Angeles Times Associated Press May 28 1997 Retrieved July 20 2018 Jebens Harley April 28 2000 CUC Gets Renamed gamespot com Retrieved July 20 2018 CUC Now Cendant Game Developer UBM TechWeb March 1998 p 13 Hansell Saul November 20 1998 Cendant Said to Near Sale of Software Division The New York Times Retrieved July 20 2018 Cendant Sells Software Unit Wired November 20 1998 Retrieved July 20 2018 Rose Frank December 1 2000 Vivendi s High Wireless Act Wired Retrieved July 20 2018 a b Havas Interactive Changes Name To Vivendi gamasutra com May 16 2001 Retrieved July 20 2018 Graser Marc November 15 2001 Viv U streamlines games variety com Retrieved July 20 2018 Fahey Rob October 8 2003 General Electric buys Vivendi media empire gamesindustry biz Retrieved July 21 2018 Gibson Ellie March 3 2006 Vivendi Universal to shorten company name gamesindustry biz Retrieved July 20 2018 Maragos Nich March 3 2006 Gamasutra The Art amp Business of Making Games gamasutra com Retrieved July 21 2018 Rosmarin Rachel December 2 2007 Vivendi To Merge With Activision forbes com Retrieved July 20 2018 a b Alexander Leigh July 8 2008 Activision Blizzard Merger Official kotaku com Retrieved July 20 2018 a b Alexander Leigh July 10 2008 Activision Blizzard Merger Finalized kotaku com Retrieved July 20 2018 Pattison Narayan July 29 2008 Activision Drops Several Vivendi Games IGN Varanini Giancarlo August 13 2002 Vivendi creates new studio gamespot com Retrieved July 22 2018 IGN Staff August 13 2002 VU Creates Black Label Games ign com Retrieved July 22 2018 Pham Alex March 11 2003 Fox Sells Video Game Division to Vivendi Los Angeles Times Retrieved July 22 2018 Un nuovo team per Vivendi Universal multiplayer it in Italian March 27 2002 IGN Staff November 13 2002 Europe Gets Hard Early ign com Retrieved July 22 2018 Lewis Peter H February 21 1996 CUC Will Buy 2 Software Companies for 1 8 Billion The New York Times Retrieved July 20 2018 Stokes Ian June 26 2018 Buy Low Sell High Vivendi s History in Video Games Kotaku UK Archived from the original on July 21 2018 Retrieved July 22 2018 Teather David June 19 2000 Vivendi seals merger The Guardian Retrieved July 22 2018 Maragos Nich March 3 2006 Gamasutra The Art amp Business of Making Games gamasutra com Retrieved July 21 2018 Vivendi acquires Centerscore gamesindustry biz September 13 2006 Retrieved July 21 2018 Dobson Jason September 12 2006 Vivendi Acquires Centerscore Expands Mobile Portfolio gamasutra com Retrieved July 21 2018 Takahashi Dean March 1 1994 Technology Los Angeles Times Retrieved July 22 2018 2K Madrid 2K Madrid Archived from the original on April 1 2021 Retrieved April 30 2021 Lewis Peter H February 21 1996 CUC Will Buy 2 Software Companies for 1 8 Billion The New York Times Retrieved July 20 2018 Gibson Ellie January 6 2006 Vivendi Universal acquires High Moon Studios gamesindustry biz Retrieved July 21 2018 Vivendi Universal Publishing announces the acquisition of Massive Entertainment bluesnews com October 3 2002 Retrieved July 21 2018 Parker Sam October 3 2002 Vivendi Universal acquires Massive Entertainment gamespot com Retrieved July 22 2018 Fahey Rob March 23 2005 VU Games acquires Simpsons Hit amp Run developer Radical Entertainment gamesindustry biz Retrieved July 21 2018 Jenkins David March 23 2005 Vivendi Universal Acquires Simpsons Hit amp Run Developer gamasutra com Retrieved July 21 2018 Fahey Rob June 15 2005 Vivendi nets Swordfish in new acquisition deal gamesindustry biz Retrieved July 21 2018 Arendt Susan February 20 2007 Vivendi Acquires Assault Heroes Developer Wired Retrieved July 21 2018 Boyer Brandon February 20 2007 Vivendi Acquires Wanako Games gamasutra com Retrieved July 21 2018 Kietzmann Ludwig February 20 2007 Vivendi acquires Wanako Games engadget com Retrieved July 21 2018 Kaplan Karen February 10 1997 Davidson Founders Make Quiet Exit Los Angeles Times Retrieved July 20 2018 Fahey Rob October 6 2004 Vivendi Universal sells educational games division gamesindustry biz Retrieved July 21 2018 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Vivendi Games amp oldid 1218266040, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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