In an investor release today, Activision Blizzard announced fourth quarter and 2013 calendar year earnings were better than anticipated.

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"For the calendar year 2013, GAAP net revenues from digital channels were $1.56 billion and represented 34% of the company’s total revenues," said the release.Activison Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick said, "2013 was a transformational year for Activision Blizzard and for our industry. Our transaction with Vivendi returned us to independence and eliminated the challenges and constraints of being a controlled company. The continued success of our games delivered better-than-expected financial results."In an earnings call to investors today, company representatives outlined their successes. They point the company's earnings being driven by two major franchises: Call of Duty and Skylanders , with the franchises having "4 of the top 10 best selling games in North America and Europe." As of December 31, 2013, World of Warcraft "remains the number one subscription-based MMORPG, with approximately 7.8 million subscribers," up from 7.6 million the year prior Looking to the future, Kotick has high hopes for Destiny. "We expect Bungie’s Destiny , an innovative shared-world, first-person action game to be Activision Publishing’s next billion-dollar franchise," he said. "We expect that Destiny will become the best-selling new video game IP in history."What do you think of today's earnings announcement from Blizzard? Let us know in the comments below.

Seth Macy is a freelance writer and photographer. Follow him on Twitter @sethmacy and MyIGN at sethgmacy