Activision Blizzard made a significant personnel move this week, saying the hiring of Main League Baseball deputy commissioner Tony Pettiti to steer its esports and entertainment efforts.
Pettiti, who will officially begin on August seventeenth, shall be Activision Blizzard’s President of Sports and Leisure and report directly to CEO Bobby Kotick.
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Kotick commented in a launch: “Tony is one of the crucial extremely regarded executives in sports and entertainment. His success in media and as Deputy Commissioner and Chief Working Officer of Main League Baseball is the perfect blend of skills to assist us notice our aspirations for esports and our associated businesses. He is admired by owners, media executives, gamers, and followers.”
Activision Blizzard presently runs two franchised leagues: Overwatch League and Name of Responsibility League. Moreover, Blizzard runs esports initiatives for titles resembling Hearthstone, StarCraft II, Warcraft III, and World of Warcraft. In addition to esports, Pettiti will oversee the company’s movie, television, and shopper merchandise efforts.
Prior to his roles of Deputy Commissioner, Enterprise and Media of Main League Baseball and Chief Operating Officer for the league, Pettiti was the President of the traditional sports league’s MLB Network, which he helped launch in 2008. Earlier than that, the 13-time Emmy award winner was an Executive VP and Executive Producer at CBS Sports activities.
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Petitti added: “Bobby Kotick has been translating his imaginative and prescient into opportunity at Activision Blizzard for 30 years. I couldn’t be more excited to use my own 30 years of sports. Entertainment experience to help Activision Blizzard realise its ambitions. It’s clear to me the corporate has an incredible opportunity to connect players and followers in new and innovative methods, and I’m excited to be joining the corporate at such an important second in its historical past.
“The last 12 years in baseball have been extraordinary for me and I am especially grateful for the leadership and mentorship that Commissioner Manfred offered to me and the League.”
Esports Insider says: You understand it’s a large opportunity when someone who is probably next in line to run Main League Baseball opts to depart the storied league. Activision Blizzard has invested a lot of time and assets into esports up to now, and it might have a robust hand to make sure that its franchised leagues come out of the pandemic able to capitalise on the company’s formidable, however quickly sidelined plans for matches in native markets around the globe.
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