By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use. Close
Phil Spencer: We Have Changed How We Do Certain Things With Activision

Phil Spencer: We Have Changed How We Do Certain Things With Activision - News

by William D'Angelo , posted on 11 January 2022 / 2,791 Views

Activision Blizzard has been under fire for several months due to having what is described as a "frat boy culture" with multiple reports of sexual harassment and discrimination. 

Head of Xbox Phil Spencer in an interview with The New York Times and transcribed by VideoGamesChronicle has said Xbox has changed the way it does certain things with Activision Blizzard.

"The work we do specifically with a partner like Activision is something that, obviously, I’m not going to talk publicly about," said Spencer. "We have changed how we do certain things with them, and they’re aware of that."

He added, "Any of the partners that are out there, if I can learn from them or I can help with the journey that we’ve been on on Xbox by sharing what we’ve done and what we’ve built, I’d much rather do that than get into any kind of finger-wagging at other companies that are out there."

Spencer in a previous email sent to employees at Xbox criticized Activision Blizzard and at the time said Xbox is "evaluating all aspects of our relationship" with Activision Blizzard. He and the gaming leadership team are "disturbed and deeply troubled by the horrific events and actions" at the publisher.


A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel dedicated to gaming Let's Plays and tutorials. You can contact the author at wdangelo@vgchartz.com or on Twitter @TrunksWD.


More Articles

55 Comments
Jumpin (on 11 January 2022)

How can I take this guy seriously? The dude wears the same shirt in every interview.

  • +6
DroidKnight Jumpin (on 11 January 2022)

Ha,ha. lol

  • +3
Ayla Jumpin (on 11 January 2022)

But he's got a nice hairstyle and probably a big dick.

  • -6
SanAndreasX Jumpin (on 11 January 2022)

Come on, you know that every time Phil Spencer farts, we hear about it. XD

  • +1
DonFerrari Jumpin (on 12 January 2022)

Do he or is just that one interview generates 10 news/reports and they put the same picture in all of them?

  • +3
DroidKnight DonFerrari (on 12 January 2022)

Pretty sure that was the joke. That's what cracked me up.

  • +6
Comment was deleted...
mjk45 (on 11 January 2022)

So what I got from that is I'm doing jack shit when it comes to any concrete measures regarding activision that would show that behaviour has consequences , but rest assured I'm mentally projecting kind thoughts of a more inclusive and safe place at them ,that and my spouting of platitudes will change their culture .

  • +2
SanAndreasX mjk45 (on 11 January 2022)

This checks out.

  • 0
Imaginedvl mjk45 (on 11 January 2022)

yah I don't think anyone is doing anything to be honest (including Microsoft... No matter what Spencer says). At the end they all want to "look" good for the consumers, but money is going to still be driving their relationship with Activision. Which sucks...

  • +6
DonFerrari mjk45 (on 12 January 2022)

Yep. Virtue Signalizing without even saying anything at all, but some will love it. Because nowadays it is more about what you preach than what you effectively do.

  • -1
Azzanation DonFerrari (on 18 January 2022)

So are you going to take back this comment now? Seems like they did more then preach.

  • 0
DonFerrari Azzanation (on 18 January 2022)

I will certainly prefer to wait until their actions are show. But sure they seem to be doing something, as said in the thread on the subject, paying a premium of over 30% on the shares for the shareholders (which include Bobby).

  • 0
DonFerrari (on 12 January 2022)

Very useless insert of the interview, and again one interview making like 10 different reports for this site and others. Worse yet, a very non-answer answer that talks about nothing.

  • +1
Azzanation (on 18 January 2022)

This aged well

  • 0
Chazore (on 11 January 2022)

"I’m not going to talk publicly about"

And why pray tell, is that?. What's to stop you spilling the beans for any of this?.

Yes, yes I know NDA's and all that corpo bs, but from what we've seen literally leaking all over the net, no one really give a shit about those anymore, and we know staff steal friggin breast milk from mothers at Blizzard, so I'm pretty sure we can hear about what's going on between you and acti, that could also be made public, and let us understand just what's going on between you two, that you just let us know you won't tell us about

(big red flag, never tell anyone you've got shit you don't wanna tell anyone about, because people like me won't stop until it's spilled).

You can tell us you've changed how you work with them, but I want to know every detail of what you're doing, what you're going to do with that company as a partner. I know you're playing paragon hero in the corpo world, but no corpo is your best mate or looking out for lil Timmy, so I want to know what the deets are, Mr Spencer.

  • 0
Azzanation Chazore (on 11 January 2022)

Companies like Activision will fine any reason to sue.

  • +8
Comment was deleted...
Imaginedvl Chazore (on 11 January 2022)

"Any sane and dedicate court of law should see that they shouldn't be allowed to cry wolf or throw even so much as a toy out of their pram for the shit they've done."

Well, that's not how the law works tho (and thanks god for that). Just because you are in trouble for one thing does not mean you do not have the right to protect yourself (even if not not founded) and sue someone else for another thing... How absurd this would be...

  • +7
DonFerrari Chazore (on 12 January 2022)

He certainly cant talk about anything he wants in this regard, but to say they changed how they do things but cant say anything at all for me just look like pretending.

  • -4
Azzanation DonFerrari (on 18 January 2022)

Guess this comment aged well. Pretending? to buying them out behind the scenes.

  • 0
DonFerrari Azzanation (on 18 January 2022)

So you are going to say MS cared so much about the problems in this company that they decided to put 70B to buy it? Ok.

  • 0
Azzanation DonFerrari (on 18 January 2022)

Your are the one calling him a pretender. Buying out an organization is far from pretending. That's a fair big change to their ecosystem.

  • 0
Chazore Chazore (on 18 January 2022)

They are under investigation and have been found tampering and shredding evidence, by any account, they shouldn't have any ground to stand on in such a matter.

Any sane and dedicate court of law should see that they shouldn't be allowed to cry wolf or throw even so much as a toy out of their pram for the shit they've done.

You're likely right, but I still want to believe that they shouldn't be allowed to even do such a thing, because they've frankly done more damage, that to get a kudos from their end would be a disservice to all. They've opened pandoras box and that lid isn't going to close anytime soon.

  • 0
2zosteven (on 11 January 2022)

What about Bill Gates?

  • 0
LudicrousSpeed 2zosteven (on 11 January 2022)

Papa Phil tries to contact him and set him straight but he can’t get past Bill Gates 5G defense. He’ll have to wait for JFK Jr to come back and help

  • -4
Comment was deleted...
Kakadu18 2zosteven (on 11 January 2022)

What about him?

  • +1
Imaginedvl mjk45 (on 11 January 2022)

I mean. "He was known to hit on female employees", how to heck do you even come up with that lol...

Even the article you linked is talking about "ONE" employee he was "flirting" by email with, and Microsoft told him to stop, and he stopped... End of story.

From a few emails to one employee he was flirting with, you come up with him being "known" as hitting on female employees... Seriously, this generation and how they get offended and completely blow up almost everything based on a "one-liner" they read in the news...

  • +7
mjk45 Imaginedvl (on 11 January 2022)

Taking your criticism onboard I have changed the post from known to purported, it was just one example and talking to my cousin who works in this area this type of action is usually only taken when it is shown to be repeatable behaviour and it would exceedingly rare for it to happen based on a single case especially one so benign and involving someone of Gates stature, there are other reports another mentions an employee alleging a later affair with Bill , whatever truth lies behind those other claims I don't know; my post was in regard to why Bill Gates was mentioned here and while I admit I could have better defined that, the short answer is Bill has a well discussed history in this space unjustified or not , and that's why he was mentioned by others .

  • 0
Imaginedvl mjk45 (on 11 January 2022)

Okay fair enough, but honestly, and I'm not trying to preach for Bill Gates or anything. In his case, there is really nothing other than those emails, to a single employee that he was flirting with. People are making a balloon out of it, just because he is famous to be honest :) The rest is just rumors and allegations, from people saying "oh yah, he did that to someone else too".
Anyway, thanks for changing that; I think it more accurate ;-)

  • +3
mjk45 Imaginedvl (on 11 January 2022)

no worries

  • 0
DonFerrari Imaginedvl (on 12 January 2022)

Also dont forget that at his position any flirting in office is basically sexual offense due to the power difference. And as said by mjk for it to be made public it likely happened more times before. You dont expose the top of the organization without good reason.

  • -3
Kakadu18 DonFerrari (on 12 January 2022)

Does it only look like that for me or why does most of the text in your comments look so weird?

  • +3
VAMatt Kakadu18 (on 12 January 2022)

It ain't just you. His comments have been like that for a week or so.

  • +1
DonFerrari Kakadu18 (on 12 January 2022)

When I use a " " it makes the text black and red.

  • 0
Imaginedvl DonFerrari (on 12 January 2022)

"be made public it likely happened more times before"... "you don't expose the top of the organization without a good reason", Yes you do LOL Also, you know Bill Gates is not the top of any organization, this came out way after that.

These is just random assumptions and if someone is famous, it is more likely that anything coming out will be blown out of proportion because of people making assumptions like you and just repeating them and spreading them over the internet. In the end, it becomes "the truth" to many people out there cause they just read your comment or the news title and take it as reality.

The story is actually pretty well known and has been covered and it was only to one single female employee, end of the story; the rest is just people making up stuff cause for them (and you) it is "likely".

What are you even arguing about now? That even if this has been covered, what happened is clearly explained, there is more? I mean, w/e, I'm not going to argue against your opinion... Nothing can be further for any objectivity there, and arguing on opinion is like talking to the wind...

  • +2
DonFerrari Imaginedvl (on 12 January 2022)

If it came after he had left sure it would be easier for it to get the info out (but then it would seem like the case was resting for a long time no? which actually even match not exposing the top brass). You may not think it is likely it won't change the fact (as much as me thinking it is likely don't change it as well), people are creature of habits, so usually things that happen once happen a lot more.

  • -3
Imaginedvl DonFerrari (on 12 January 2022)

We are talking about a man flirting with a woman, once.
People are creatures of habit but in that case, the point is that there is nothing other than unfounded speculations that would put basically everybody at the same level... I did flirt with women, so is it likely to happen again? Probably, in the end, there is nothing wrong with it. And esp. in his case, he stopped right away. So the rest is pure speculations and have no ground at all. I'm not going to argue if it would be possible or not... That's ridiculous now.

  • +2
Azzanation DonFerrari (on 12 January 2022)

Actually many will expose the top of an organisation because of money. People are known to lie. Gates was the richest person on the planet at that time, im sure many held targets on his head for his slightest mistakes.

  • +2
DonFerrari Azzanation (on 12 January 2022)

Yes. And that is the reason a lot of the sexual cases we have been hearing now happened decades ago, because every one wanted to expose but just forgot.....
A lot of these stuff is solved off the records with money so no one hears about it.

  • -2
Imaginedvl DonFerrari (on 12 January 2022)

The thing is: there is no "off the records" stuff here... Unless unfounded speculations out of your hat counts?

  • +1
KratosLives Imaginedvl (on 12 January 2022)

The days of trying to woo a woman is over

  • +3
2zosteven Kakadu18 (on 12 January 2022)

hes been linked to weinstein, his divorce for side women, sexual harassment at Microsoft. Just wondering what Phil has to say about that?

  • +2
mjk45 2zosteven (on 11 January 2022)

Bad hairstyle but nice glasses and certainly a little dick oops wrong reply

  • +6
SanAndreasX 2zosteven (on 11 January 2022)

He's too busy injecting nanochips into people. Ever since I got my COVID shot, I've had this strange urge to switch back to Windows from Mac.

  • +12
Azzanation 2zosteven (on 11 January 2022)

Does Gates even work thier anymore?

  • +2
Kakadu18 Azzanation (on 12 January 2022)

Not anymore.

  • 0
VAMatt Kakadu18 (on 12 January 2022)

Isn't he still on the board?

  • 0
VAMatt VAMatt (on 12 January 2022)

Confirm that he resigned from the board in 2020. So he no longer has any position at Microsoft. He is a major shareholder though, so he certainly has some influence.

  • -1
Imaginedvl VAMatt (on 12 January 2022)

1.3% hardly makes him a major shareholder :)

  • +5
DonFerrari Imaginedvl (on 12 January 2022)

Individual on a trillion dollar company owning 1.3% is quite major even more when said person is the founder.

  • -2
Imaginedvl DonFerrari (on 12 January 2022)

Well, that's not the definition of "major" shareholder... I'm tired of arguing with your own definition of stuff how things can be "interpreted" by you or some others instead of actual facts/numbers...

He is not even listed in any "list of shareholder" (major ones...) on Yahoo finances, Investopedia etc... So what now, let's argue about how "big" is major on a gaming website versus what the finance people/websites are saying?

Gates has no influence on Microsoft. None, Zero. The majority of Microsoft stocks is owned by cap. groups (like Vanguard, Backrocks etc..). Actually even Gates himself does not own any stock anymore, everything is through his invest. firm.

  • +3
Comment was deleted...