Gamescom is back in August this year, and Blizzard have announced they will be present at the Xbox booth! 
The event starts on August 21st and runs until the 25th, with War Within, the next WoW expansion, releasing a day after that (or right in the middle of the show on the 23rd for those with early access), so we might get some exciting news on it at the show. Then there's Vessel of Hatred, the new Diablo 4 expansion, as we should get some new info on it as well, with its October 8th release date also looming. The press release also mentions Diablo Immortal and Overwatch 2 will be involved.
Xbox also announced this year they will have their biggest booth at the event yet, with the Activision Blizzard merger certainly helping with that! 
And here's the full press release.
gamescom
Blizzard Entertainment® is thrilled to confirm their presence at this year’s gamescom, returning to Cologne in celebration of two of their hottest launches of 2024: World of Warcraft®: The War Within™ and Diablo IV®: Vessel of Hatred™.

This year’s show promises to bring even more excitement, as Blizzard Entertainment will have a robust footprint alongside other Xbox Game Studios in the Xbox booth, as they come together to celebrate upcoming games and connect with the community in Europe and around the world.

“We are incredibly excited to bring Warcraft, Diablo, and Overwatch to our European community at gamescom,” said Johanna Faries, President of Blizzard Entertainment. “It’s wonderful to be able to travel to Cologne alongside some of our talented developers so that we can gather with players and celebrate the special connections that continue to be forged within our universes together.”
 
World of Warcraft will be celebrating the launch of The War Within, the first entry in the ambitious Worldsoul Saga. With the global launch set for August 26 - one day after gamescom - it’s the perfect opportunity for the community to celebrate together. Players with the Epic Edition or physical Collector’s Edition of The War Within can play when early access goes live on August 23rd.
 
Diablo will also be in full force at the event, bringing the world of Sanctuary to gamescom with Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred and Diablo Immortal.

Overwatch 2 will have a joint stand with Porsche, highlighting their new collaboration featuring a life-sized D.Va statue modeled after the new all-electric Macan and inviting fans to enter a real-life rendition of an iconic Overwatch 2 map.

As the Microsoft-Activision deal closes, Bobby Kotick will only stay on as CEO through the end of the year and leave on January 1, 2024.
Placeholder for tweet 1712818483442987422 Based on the value of his shares, Robert Kotick will leave with around $400 million and if Microsoft/Xbox wants to get rid of Kotick, he will also receive a minimum payout of $250 million.

Image courtesy of Dexterto.

According to WSJ, Bobby Kotick, former CEO of Activision Blizzard, has floated the idea of buying TikTok to potential partners.
Former Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick has reportedly shown interest in purchasing TikTok, as legislation in the U.S. threatens to ban or force the sale of the popular app over national security concerns.
Kotick is said to be seeking partners for the potential acquisition, discussing the opportunity with notable figures including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. The move comes amid growing scrutiny over TikTok's data privacy practices and its ties to China, with U.S. lawmakers pushing for decisive action.
You can read the whole news piece over at WSJ.
Bobby Kotick left his position at Activision Blizzard in December 2023 after Microsoft finalized its purchase of the company. Post-acquisition, he reportedly received over $375 million, as detailed by Forbes.
Source: WSJ 

Blizzard games like World of Warcraft, Hearthstone, and Overwatch 2 might soon make a comeback in China, thanks to Blizzard reportedly teaming up again with NetEase.
The news comes from Core Esports, which suggests Blizzard's game services could be back by the end of March or the beginning of April.
After 14 years of partnership, Blizzard and NetEase hit a rough patch in 2022, leading to failed negotiations. Consequently, when the licensing agreement concluded on January 23, 2023, Blizzard's game services were suspended across mainland China.
For more details, you can check out the article in Chinese or find an English translation by Amy Chen on esports.gg.

With Johanna Faires recently taking on the role of the new President at Blizzard, let's delve into the history of Blizzard Presidents from 1991 up to the present.
Allen Adham served as President from 1991 to 1998. Mike Morhaime held the position of President and CEO from 1998 to 2018. J. Allen Brack assumed the role of President between 2018 and 2021. In 2021, Jen O'neal was named Co-Leader of Blizzard alongside Mike Ybarra. However, she chose to leave the company after just three months. Following her departure, Mike Ybarra took over as President until a few weeks ago when he also announced his departure from the company on January 25, 2024. Johanna Faires was appointed as Blizzard's President on January 29, 2024.
We've come across a Reddit post where someone alleges to have worked at Blizzard during Mike Morhaime's tenure as President, continuing through Ybarra's leadership. We can't vouch for the accuracy of their statement, but here's what they had to share with the community.
Source: Reddit