Activision Blizzard Names Tony Petitti, an MLB Executive and attorney, as President of Sports & Entertainment

Activision Blizzard, Inc. has announced the appointment of Major League Baseball’s Tony Petitti as President of Sports and Entertainment. In his new role, reporting to Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick, Petitti will oversee esports, consumer products, and film and television.

“Tony is one of the most highly regarded executives in sports and entertainment,” said Bobby Kotick, Chief Executive Officer of Activision Blizzard. “His success in media and as Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer of Major League Baseball is the perfect blend of skills to help us realize our aspirations for esports and our related businesses. He is admired by owners, media executives, players and fans.”

Petitti most recently served as Deputy Commissioner, Business and Media of Major League Baseball and Chief Operating Officer, where he led marketing, broadcasting and media rights sales, the MLB Network, digital content, youth programming and special events. Prior to that, Petitti was President of the MLB Network, which he helped launch from its inception in 2008.

Before joining MLB, Petitti, a 13-time Emmy-award winner, was executive vice-president and executive producer at CBS Sports where he was responsible for the network’s sports programming and production. He graduated from Haverford College before attending Harvard Law School.