Activision Blizzard Board Finds 'No Evidence' It Ignored or Downplayed Harassment

ign.com:

After conducting its own internal investigation, Activision Blizzard's Board of Directors claims it has found 'no evidence' to suggest that its senior executives and its own members ignored or downplayed gender harassment. It's also urging its shareholders to vote against an upcoming proposal to craft a report about its own efforts to prevent abuse and harassment.

In a new SEC filing, Activision Blizzard asserted:

The initial complaint from the state of California, filed after a two-year-long investigation, accuses the company leadership of knowing about and failing to prevent numerous internal cultural issues. Subsequent reports and lawsuits have similarly included accusations that incidents were reported and either ignored or brushed aside with little meaningful consequences for the perpetrators. After the initial slate of allegations, over 20 employees had been fired as a result by the following October, and over 20 more had been otherwise disciplined.

Notably, Activision Blizzard's committee response focuses specifically on harassment that "occurred and was reported" as defined by the company.

The internal investigation in question was first announced back in November, following a California lawsuit and a sweeping wave of allegations of abuse, harassment, and gender-related disparities at the company. Among them was the accusation that CEO Bobby Kotick knew of many of the issues at the company, but failed to take action. The Activision Blizzard board of directors backed Kotick in a statement at the time, saying it remained "confident that Bobby Kotick appropriately addressed workplace issues brought to his attention."

As allegations mounted, the board established a Workplace Responsibility Committee to conduct its own