Activision's Microtransaction Income Last Year Was $4 Billion Because Microtransactions

Microtransactions drove a majority of the income for Activision Blizzard last year. That's right, loot boxes, engrams as well as purchases made on mobile games like Candy Crush were the biggest source of revenue for the publisher. 

During a meeting discussing the company's financial results, the publisher of Destiny 2 and Hearthstone revealed that although $7.16 billion represented a record figure in terms of revenue, about $4 billion of that money was generated by in-game purchases. That's right, less than half of their income is represented by actual games. 

That isn't entirely surprising as not only are microtransactions a growing part of the game industry, but every big game the publisher releases features them. Whether we're talking Call of Duty: WWII, Overwatch or Destiny 2, there're loads of post-retail monetization mechanisms built into Activision Blizzard's games.

As alluded to above, Activision also owns King, the makers of Candy Crush and other games heavy with monetization mechanisms and microtransactions. Revenue from King is valued at $2 billion, which means that the PC and console in-game purchases make up the remaining $2 billion.