Activision Blizzard was investigated for violating whistleblower protection and disclosure rules, and settled with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for $35 million.
Activision Blizzard will pay $35 million to settle U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charges that the company broke government rules on whistleblower protection and investor disclosure. The SEC launched an investigation into the World of Warcraft and Call of Duty publisher months after California’s Civil Rights Department, previously called the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, filed its sexual harassment lawsuit lawsuit in 2021. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed and settled a similar lawsuit in 2021, with Activision Blizzard agreeing to pay a $18 million settlement in that case.
Unlike the Civil Rights Department and EEOC investigations, the SEC probe was not focused on sexual harassment or workplace misconduct itself. Instead, it was about how Activision Blizzard collects, analyzes, and discloses reports of those issues, and about the company’s separation agreements.
The SEC is focused on businesses and the economy, and it’s charged with protecting investors. In the Activision Blizzard case, it was investigating if and how the company disclosed to investors information about harassment and discrimination allegations. In legal speak, the SEC charged Activision Blizzard with failing to “maintain disclosure controls and procedures to ensure that the company could assess whether its disclosures pertaining to its workforce were adequate.” The second violation is tied to a rule that protects whistleblowers, allowing them to report information to the SEC without retaliation.
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In this settlement, Activision Blizzard isn’t “admitting or denying” any of the SEC’s findings, the commission notes in the full filing.
“We are pleased to have amicably resolved this matter,” Activision Blizzard spokesperson Joe Christinat said in a statement to Polygon. “As the order recognizes, we have enhanced our disclosure processes with regard to workplace reporting and updated our separation contract language.
