Activision Publishing CEO Mike Griffith has revealed that they have now set their sights on breaking into the action genre with a brand new IP. Details about the IP are still scarce, but Griffith did share with Develop why Activision, which has become decidedly restrictive when it comes to new IP, made the decision. I bet you guys can guess why.

Shocking title? No, not really. That's not meant to bash the E3 2009 event. After all, it was a HUGELY successful one, and we're really happy for ESA that it all worked out so well. After all, it was only last year that they were practically declared clinically dead by the industry. And it was a big comeback they sure showed this year. BUT. All that you're gonna see here are news items and industry happenings that did NOT happen at E3, although not necessarily with absolutely nothing to do with the stuff that went down in LA. Hopefully you'll still read up on this one despite that limited scope. There is life beyond E3, after all. *wink*

Even though the movie tie-in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen hasn't yet reached its June 2009 release target, Variety is reporting that according to various sources, Activision already has someone working on another Transformers game for 2010. What's more, rumor also has it that there's a new Spider-Man game in the works.

Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick explains why they decided not to retain all of Vivendi's games when the two companies merged. The reason? The games just weren't "exploitable" enough. More in the full article.

At the recent Activision Blizzard Analyst Day in Los Angeles, Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick expressed confidence that the design of future home consoles may well be affected by Activision's success. Kotick also mentioned that the arrival of the next console generation could take a lot longer compared to prior console cycles.

In the video game industry, it's important not to rest on one's laurels. Activision probably knows this. In spite of the fact that its Q4 and fiscal year 2008 financial reports have shown encouraging results, the company is already planning its next ventures in the near future. This was evident in the company's recent conference call. More lucrative news follows after the jump.

'Tis the season for submitting fiscal year reports, it seems. While we heard from THQ last time, Activision has now stepped up to the plate to report the results of its fourth quarter and 2008 fiscal year. More financial statistics follow in the full article after the jump.

If anyone who's been paying attention to the video game industry is to name the big publishers, we'll probably hear Activision and Electronic Arts for good reason. While both have enjoyed success and displayed how much they're willing to pay to acquire development studios, they seem to have different views. For one, unlike EA, Activision doesn't believe Take-Two is attractive enough for acquisition.

More details at the full article.

A lot of people have split opinions on the effectiveness of in-game advertising. However, Sony's chief executive Howard Stern expressed his doubts on the potential of that particular marketing trend. He wasn't alone in the idea either; other big names from major companies such as NBC Universal and Activision Blizzard voiced similar sentiments.

For more details, check out the full article after the jump!

Activision already has the distinction of having the most titles available for the Nintendo Wii's launch last year, but the company isn't done yet. According to CVG, Activision now plans to double its support not only for the Wii, but for the Nintendo DS handheld as well.

CVG reports that during a conference call to analysts, Activision CEO, Bobby Kotick, said: "Activision recognised the Wii opportunity, and we had one of the largest lineups at launch. In fiscal '08, we will double our product offerings on Wii and DS as we plan to be even more successful on these platforms."

"To date, there has been strong consumer response to all three next-generation consoles, which truly are delivering new gaming experiences to broader, more diverse audiences than ever before," Kotick added. The company also has high hopes for its fiscal third quarter and has also raised revenue forecasts for the fourth quarter.