Good idea, get a group of employees who just finished a game which sold 20 million copies and made your company a whole lot of money, and piss them off so much that they leave.

I don't know too much about running a business but I'm pretty sure that's a bad idea.

The two people who were fired flew to EA to make a deal to stall until they could start hiring people from activison to their EA teams.

They basically stopped doing their work... while getting paid... so they could convince everyone to abandon activision.

What was Activision supposed to do?  Let everybody just sit, draw paychecks, do nothing and jump ship to EA?

They were arranging to move the entire studio to EA by putting off work on new games that would make the other workers easier to poach even though they had a deal to not negotiate anything until their contracts run out.

http://www.joystiq.com/2010/04/09/activision-blasts-west-and-zampella-in-countersuit/

The suit further details that specific allegation, claiming the two took, "a secret trip by private jet to Northern California, arranged by their Hollywood agent, to meet with the most senior executives of Activision's closest competitor," who we're understanding to be the Redwood Shores-based Electronic Arts. When asked for comment about the allegations, EA spokesperson Jeff Brown responded (with this totally sick burn), "We don't have the time to comment on the many lawsuits Activision files against its employees and creative partners."

If all of that wasn't enough, the 23-page document also claims that West and Zampella "delayed pre-production" of a third Modern Warfare game, and tried to "prevent Activision from awarding additional compensation to [IW] team members" so that the two could easily poach former co-workers from Infinity Ward. Whoa whoa whoa, another Modern Warfare game you say? Madness!

Kaz, while no one knows what is the full truth. You can understand why people pick the two employees over Activision.

Activision as of late has been a little bit cocky and assholish (CEO Comments). Also I believe the reason why two employees left and betrayed Activision was in part to the royalties that were not paid out. Which if I remember correctly was for everyone in the company not just the two people.

Edit: Assuming they did leave, and meet up with EA. (which might or might not be true). 

No, I can't understand why people pick the two employees over activision.

In one story, they are both wrong... in the other story... only the two employees are wrong.

So, either you should be siding with Activision or nobody.

Also it wasn't that royalties weren't paid out.  You've got your story wrong.  The Royalty payments were on time.  It's just they started AFTER those two were fired.

http://www.joystiq.com/2010/03/05/activision-infinity-ward-court-documents-detail-ex-studio-heads/

Actually even under their Lawsuit they're the only guys who are wrong.  They are just bitching because the franchise they made was way more successful then they thought and they want more money.  The lawsuit even says as much.

"They bought us for 5 million then made 3 billion!" 

When it's your company, everything under you is your fault. Everyone makes mistakes. (Activision) But, the employees besides Zampella and is partner who breached their may or may not have breached their contracts. the ones under them, programmers etc. Why would or should they stay with infinity ward if EA would treat them better? Regardless of whether Zamplella was recruiting. Activision if they thought the team was important should have made them an offer they couldnt refuse.

And if Activision doesn't think they need them, thats fine too.

If you ask me, because I wouldn't trust working for people with so low moral character as to stop doing their job just so they could better recruit me to their next job.  How can I trust people like that?

so just to confirm all these leaving employees are going following to respawn so basically infinity ward just changed there name

My take on this is that what they did is a sackable offence but from what I've read on CVG Activision sent security into the IW offices like they were bloody storm troopers raiding Bin Laden's secret hideout just to sack them. Activision aren't helped by the fact that Kotick is seen as one of gamings biggest pillocks and the MW2 pricing madness, they could of handled the situation better as at this rate COD is about to hit a very steep slide and Activision will only be able to look at Treyarch for help.

It doesn't really matter.  The will of the people is with the guys who made the game, not the guys who put their name on it, made the commercials, and took all the money.  Even if the good guys made a horrible illegal mistake, they're still the good guys here.  Now they're the new rockstars of FPS games, like id, Rare, and Valve before them, and they have one of the greatest development contracts ever, with EA, who will now be the new good guys too.  This is awesome to watch happen, and I don't even like Call of Duty.