The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is set to approve Microsoft’s $69 billion purchase of Activision Blizzard, which will see the Xbox and Call of Duty series merge. Sony has expressed its displeasure over the CMA’s decision and has issued a statement accusing the UK regulators of making an “unprecedented and irrational” reversal after initially pushing back against the mega acquisition.
The controversy over the deal centers around how the impact of big blockbuster exclusives is measured. Microsoft claims that any players who switch to Xbox to play Call of Duty would not make up for the total loss of all Call of Duty spending on PlayStation, thus incentivizing it to keep the series on Sony’s consoles. Sony, however, argues that the players who switch consoles to keep playing Call of Duty are precisely the diehard fans who spend the most money on new releases and in-game microtransactions, suggesting that Microsoft might eventually pull the colossal franchise exclusively into its own console ecosystem after all.
Sony has also argued that the CMA discounts Microsoft’s incentive to forgo PlayStation players in order to boost the value of its rival subscription library, Game Pass, and said that even subtle differences in the quality of the game on different platforms can have a huge impact on players. Sony believes that Call of Duty gamers are passionate, knowledgeable, and sophisticated and that it is difficult to conceive of an industry where consumers are more attuned to quality and where quality affects purchasing decisions.
The deal between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard is set to close by the end of June, however, it is still awaiting approval from the European Union and facing an antitrust lawsuit by the Federal Trade Commission. It’s also unclear how the deal will affect some of 2023’s biggest releases like a reportedly new standalone Call of Duty: Modern Warfare game and Diablo IV.
The CMA’s decision to approve Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard has sparked debate over the impact of big blockbuster exclusives on the gaming industry. Sony has argued that the players who switch consoles to keep playing Call of Duty are precisely the diehard fans who spend the most money on new releases and in-game microtransactions, suggesting that Microsoft might eventually pull the colossal franchise exclusively into its own console ecosystem after all.
Sony has also argued that the CMA discounts Microsoft’s incentive to forgo PlayStation players in order to boost the value of its rival subscription library, Game Pass, and said that even subtle differences in the quality of the game on different platforms can have a huge impact. Sony believes that Call of Duty gamers are passionate, knowledgeable, and sophisticated and that it is difficult to conceive of an industry where consumers are more attuned to quality and where quality affects purchasing decisions.
The CMA’s decision to approve Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard has sparked a heated debate over the impact of big blockbuster exclusives on the gaming industry. Sony has argued that the players who switch consoles to keep playing Call of Duty are precisely the diehard fans who spend the most money on new releases and in-game microtransactions, suggesting that Microsoft might eventually pull the colossal franchise exclusively into its own console ecosystem after all. The deal between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard is set to close by the end of June, however, it is still awaiting approval from the European Union and facing an antitrust lawsuit by the Federal Trade Commission.
The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is set to approve Microsoft’s $69 billion purchase of Activision Blizzard, potentially creating a gaming powerhouse that will combine the Xbox and Call of Duty series. Sony has expressed its displeasure over the CMA’s decision, accusing the UK regulators of making an “unprecedented and irrational” reversal after initially pushing back against the mega acquisition.
Sony has argued that the players who switch consoles to keep playing Call of Duty are precisely the diehard fans who spend the most money on new releases and in-game microtransactions, suggesting that Microsoft might eventually pull the colossal franchise exclusively into its own console ecosystem after all. Sony believes that Call of Duty gamers are passionate, knowledgeable, and sophisticated and that it is difficult to conceive of an industry where consumers are more attuned to quality and where quality affects purchasing decisions.
The CMA’s decision to approve Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard has sparked a heated debate over the impact of big blockbuster exclusives on the gaming industry. Sony has argued that the players who switch consoles to keep playing Call of Duty are precisely the diehard fans who spend the most money on new releases and in-game microtransactions, suggesting that Microsoft might eventually pull the colossal franchise exclusively into its own console ecosystem.
With the CMA set to issue its final decision before the end of April, Sony has responded with a detailed list of all the ways it thinks the regulators messed up. Sony has argued that the CMA discounts Microsoft’s incentive to forgo PlayStation players in order to boost the value of its rival subscription library, Game Pass, and said that even subtle differences