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Blizzard’s New President Johanna Faries Is a Former ‘Call of Duty,’ NFL Executive

Replaces Mike Ybarra who left the video-game company last week as part of mass layoffs under new owner Microsoft

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Video-game developer Blizzard Entertainment has appointed Johanna Faries as its next president, the first new leader of the studio since Microsoft Corp. purchased its parent company Activision Blizzard Inc. for $69 billion.

Faries, previously general manager for the Call of Duty franchise at Activision, will succeed Mike Ybarra, who left the company last week amid mass layoffs. Faries started at Activision in 2018 as head of Call of Duty esports. She previously spent nearly 12 years working at the National Football League.