Modern Warfare 2 grosses over $1 billion

Activision’s ubiquitous FPS has broken yet more records with it’s sales so far the $1 billion mark.

Modern Warfare 2 “exceeded… expectations” according to Activision boss Robert Kotick, hardly surprising considering in its first five days alone it grossed more than blockbuster films like Avatar, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and The Dark Night.

Full PR is after the jump.

Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare® 2 Surpasses $1 Billion in Retail Sales Worldwide

Game Continues to Set Retail Sell-Through Records

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Jan 13, 2010 – Activision Blizzard, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) announced today that Infinity Ward’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 continues to set sell-through records crossing the $1 billion mark in retail sales worldwide since its launch in November, according to internal Activision estimates.

In its first five days alone, the game sold an estimated $550 million worldwide, outpacing five-day worldwide theatrical box office gross figures for such films as Avatar, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and The Dark Night, according to internal Activision estimates and boxofficemojo.com.

“Call of Duty:Modern Warfare 2 has exceeded our expectations and shattered theatrical box office and video game records,” said Robert Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard. “There are only a handful of entertainment properties that have ever reached the $1 billion mark, which illustrates the power of the Call of Duty franchise and mass appeal of this game.”

Modern Warfare 2 is rated “M” (Mature) by the ESRB for Blood, Drug Reference, Intense Violence and Language. For additional information about the game, visit www.modernwarfare2.com.

About Activision Publishing, Inc.

Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Activision Publishing, Inc. is a leading worldwide developer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and leisure products.

Activision Publishing maintains operations in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, Spain, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Australia, Russia, Japan, South Korea, China and the region of Taiwan. More information about Activision and its products can be found on the company’s website, www.activision.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements: Information in this press release that involves Activision Publishing’s expectations, plans, intentions or strategies regarding the future are forward-looking statements that are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Activision Publishing generally uses words such as “outlook,” “will,” “could,” “would,” “might,” “remains,” “to be,” “plans,” “believes,” “may,” “expects,” “intends,” “anticipates,” “estimate,” future,” “plan,” “positioned,” “potential,” “project,” “remain,” “scheduled,” “set to,” “subject to,” “upcoming” and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause Activision Publishing’s actual future results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements set forth in this release include, but are not limited to, sales levels of Activision Publishing’s titles, shifts in consumer spending trends, the impact of the current macroeconomic environment, the seasonal and cyclical nature of the interactive game market, Activision Publishing’s ability to predict consumer preferences among competing hardware platforms, declines in software pricing, product returns and price protection, product delays, retail acceptance of Activision Publishing’s products, adoption rate and availability of new hardware (including peripherals) and related software, industry competition, rapid changes in technology, industry standards and consumer preferences, protection of proprietary rights, litigation against Activision Publishing, maintenance of relationships with key personnel, customers, licensees, licensors, vendors and third-party developers, counterparty risks relating to customers, licensees, licensors and manufacturers, domestic and international economic, financial and political conditions and policies, foreign exchange rates and tax rates, integration of recent acquisitions and the identification of suitable future acquisition opportunities, and the other factors identified in the risk factors section of Activision Blizzard’s most recent annual report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon information available to Activision Publishing and Activision Blizzard as of the date of this release, and neither Activision Publishing nor Activision Blizzard assumes any obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be incorrect. These statements are not guarantees of the future performance of Activision Publishing or Activision Blizzard and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond its control and may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations.

*All references cited are sourced according to www.boxofficemojo.com or www.guinnessworldrecords.com

© 2009 Activision Publishing, Inc. Activision, Call of Duty and Modern Warfare are registered trademarks of Activision Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. All other trademarks and trade names are the properties of their respective owners.

Xbox 360, Xbox LIVE, and Windows are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.

One Response to “Modern Warfare 2 grosses over $1 billion”

  1. Hopefully they’ll use these funds to actually play test the next Modern Warfare installment before release.