VIDEO GAMES: MODERN WARFARE 3 Beats AVATAR's $1 Billion Sales Record

The following press release has been issued today revealing that hit video game Modern Warfare 3 has nabbed Avatar's record of being the the fastest-selling piece of entertainment, reaching the $1 billion mark in only 16 days. The full details are all below, but just to put it into context for you, the video game sold 6.5 million copies during its first 24 hours on sale in North America and the UK alone. Do you think any of the 2012 comic book movies will beat this financial milestone?

Santa Monica, CA- December 12, 2011 – Activision Publishing, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI), announced today that Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare™ 3 crossed the $1 billion mark in sales since its launch on November 8, 2011, according to Charttrack and retail customer sell-through information. Highlighting the trend of interactive entertainment gaining a greater hold of audiences worldwide, the game achieved this milestone in just 16 days, eclipsing the record set in 2009 by the feature film "Avatar," which reached the $1 billion milestone in 17 days.

While 2011 box office revenue is on the decline – down 4 percent this year at $9.4 billion, compared with $9.8 billion in 2010 — the number of people purchasing and participating in gaming is on the rise, with no sign of slowing.¹ With more than 30 million gamers, the Call of Duty community now exceeds the combined populations of the cities of New York, London, Tokyo, Paris and Madrid.

¹According to boxofficemojo.com and PricewaterhouseCoopers’Global Entertainment and Media Outlook

Engagement of our Call of Duty audience continues to rise around the world," said Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard.

Call of Duty® as an entertainment franchise has made an indelible mark on popular culture and its broad and continued success is further validation that audiences are now valuing interactive experiences over passive experiences.

Call of Duty is now amongst that rarified group of sustained franchises like "Star Wars", "Harry Potter", "Lord of the Rings" and the National Football League (NFL) that attract or engage tens of millions of people every year or every new release.

Our Call of Duty Elite is one of the fastest growing new online service ever with more than six million players registered since its launch November 8, 2011 and over one million premium subscriptions sold to date. By comparison, the premium subscription services of Netflix, Hulu Plus, Sirius XM and Xbox® LIVE®, each reached one million paid subscribers after approximately one year.

"Call of Duty has become that rare entertainment franchise that transcends its own genre. Core gamers love it, as our stellar reviews show. But every year, new people are drawn into Call of Duty," said Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision Publishing. "And while the franchise continues to set records, our fans still seem to want more, demonstrated by our record setting start on Call of Duty Elite. We are committed to helping everyone connect, compete and improve their game, Call of Duty style."