Regulators Reportedly Widen Probe Into Activision Workplace Misconduct

Samson Amore

Samson Amore is a reporter for dot.LA. He holds a degree in journalism from Emerson College. Send tips or pitches to samsonamore@dot.la and find him on Twitter @Samsonamore.

Regulators Reportedly Widen Probe Into Activision Workplace Misconduct
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Activision Blizzard may be on the verge of sealing the video game industry’s largest merger ever, but even its impending deal with Microsoft can’t stop the momentum of investigations into workplace misconduct at the company.

As part of its lawsuit over an alleged “frat house” culture at Activision where women were subject to sexual harassment and unequal pay, California’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) is now issuing subpoenas to Activision directors to determine their knowledge and handling of the allegations, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.


The agency also subpoenaed Los Angeles-area police departments for records on Activision CEO Bobby Kotick and 18 other current and former employees—including documents related to the company’s annual BlizzCon event, where employees once drank and partied in a hotel suite nicknamed after disgraced comedian Bill Cosby.

Separately, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is also expanding its own investigation into Activision by subpoenaing more records from a longer list of Activision executives dating back to 2016, according to the Journal.

In September, Activision struck an $18 million settlement with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) over the workplace misconduct allegations. Last month, the DFEH stepped in to block the settlement, arguing it could damage the state’s case against the video game developer.

When reached for comment, an Activision spokesperson told dot.LA that the DFEH’s requests for police records had “no legitimate purpose.”

“It represents yet another questionable tactic in DFEH’s broader effort to derail Activision Blizzard’s settlement with the EEOC,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “Rather than protecting California workers, the DFEH is impeding the meaningful progress at Activision Blizzard and delaying compensation to affected employees.”

While the DFEH declined to comment on its ongoing investigation, an agency spokesperson told dot.LA that Activision filed a motion to dismiss the DFEH’s police department subpoenas earlier this month. Activision also filed its own subpoena directed to DFEH attorneys, which the agency filed a motion to quash on Feb. 10, the spokesperson said.

The SEC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The state and federal investigations are taking place against the backdrop of Microsoft’s $69 billion bid to acquire Activision, which is pending antitrust approval. The deal isn’t expected to close until 2023; in the meantime, Activision continues to exist as a standalone entity subject to both regulatory queries and private lawsuits. According to SEC filings, Microsoft would owe Activision $3 billion if it reneges on the deal; likewise, Activision would be liable for $2.3 billion if it backed out.

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LA Tech ‘Moves’: LeaseLock, Visgenx, PlayVS and Pressed Juicery Gains New CEOs

Decerry Donato

Decerry Donato is a reporter at dot.LA. Prior to that, she was an editorial fellow at the company. Decerry received her bachelor's degree in literary journalism from the University of California, Irvine. She continues to write stories to inform the community about issues or events that take place in the L.A. area. On the weekends, she can be found hiking in the Angeles National forest or sifting through racks at your local thrift store.

LA Tech ‘Moves’: LeaseLock, Visgenx, PlayVS and Pressed Juicery Gains New CEOs
LA Tech ‘Moves’:

“Moves,” our roundup of job changes in L.A. tech, is presented by Interchange.LA, dot.LA's recruiting and career platform connecting Southern California's most exciting companies with top tech talent. Create a free Interchange.LA profile here—and if you're looking for ways to supercharge your recruiting efforts, find out more about Interchange.LA's white-glove recruiting service by emailing Sharmineh O’Farrill Lewis (sharmineh@dot.la). Please send job changes and personnel moves to moves@dot.la.

***

LeaseLock, a lease insurance and financial technology provider for the rental housing industry named Janine Steiner Jovanovic as chief executive officer. Prior to this role, Steiner Jovanovic served as the former EVP of Asset Optimization at RealPage.

Esports platform PlayVS hired EverFi co-founder and seasoned business leader Jon Chapman as the company’s chief executive officer.

Biotechnology company Visgenx appointed William Pedranti, J.D. as chief executive officer. Before joining, Mr. Pedranti was a partner with PENG Life Science Ventures.

Pressed Juicery, the leading cold-pressed juice and functional wellness brand welcomed Justin Nedelman as chief executive officer. His prior roles include chief real estate officer of FAT Brands Inc. and co-founder of Eureka! Restaurant Group.

Michael G. Vicari joined liquid biopsy company Nucleix as chief commercial officer. Vicari served as senior vice president of Sales at GRAIL, Inc.

Full-service performance marketing agency Allied Global Marketing promoted Erin Corbett to executive vice president of global partnership and marketing. Prior to joining Allied, Corbett's experience included senior marketing roles at Disney, Warner Bros. Studios, Harrah's Entertainment and Imagi Animation Studios.

Nuvve, a vehicle-to-grid technology company tapped student transportation and automotive sales and marketing executive David Bercik to lead the K-12 student transportation division.

This Week in ‘Raises’: Curri Scoops Up $42M, Mosaic Scores $26M

Decerry Donato

Decerry Donato is a reporter at dot.LA. Prior to that, she was an editorial fellow at the company. Decerry received her bachelor's degree in literary journalism from the University of California, Irvine. She continues to write stories to inform the community about issues or events that take place in the L.A. area. On the weekends, she can be found hiking in the Angeles National forest or sifting through racks at your local thrift store.

Raises
Image by Joshua Letona

A local logistics platform raised fresh funding to put toward product development, infrastructure and sales and marketing initiatives, while a San Diego-based fintech company closed its Series C funding round to expand its investment in AI which will empower high-growth SMB and mid-market finance leaders.

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Venture Capital

Curri, a Ventura-based logistics platform, raised a $42 million Series B funding round led by Bessemer Venture Partners.

San Diego-based financial platform Mosaic raised a $26 million Series C funding round led by OMERS Ventures.

AHARA, a Los Angeles-based startup focused on providing personalized nutrition suggestions, raised a $10.25 million seed funding round led by Greycroft.

Per an SEC filing, San Diego-based developer of peptide therapeutics designed to assist in the treatment of autoimmune diseases and disorders selectIon raised $5 million in funding.

Miscellaneous

Los Angeles-based Sensydia, a company working on non-invasive cardiac diagnostics, said this morning that it has received $3 million in a NIH grant.

Raises is dot.LA’s weekly feature highlighting venture capital funding news across Southern California’s tech and startup ecosystem. Please send fundraising news to Decerry Donato (decerrydonato@dot.la).

Why a Downturn in Esports Investments Isn’t Something To Fear

Samson Amore

Samson Amore is a reporter for dot.LA. He holds a degree in journalism from Emerson College. Send tips or pitches to samsonamore@dot.la and find him on Twitter @Samsonamore.

Why a Downturn in Esports Investments Isn’t Something To Fear
Samson Amore

Last year, global venture capital investment in esports dropped by more than 40%. Investors have been rapidly selling off teams and franchises, and the industry has witnessed a consistent decline in ad spend. This has prompted many critics to coin the term “esports winter,” referring to a fall-off in the industry, an indication that VCs believe their investments didn’t achieve success as expected.

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