Perhaps based on the recent appeals court's rejection of the Federal Trade Commission'sTemporary injunction preventing Microsoft from completing its acquisition of Activision Blizzard, and the UK Competition and Markets Authority also agreed to suspend the lawsuit against Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Therefore, Sony also reached an agreement with Microsoft earlier, and Microsoft promised that after completing the acquisition of Activision Blizzard, it would continue to provide the "Call of Duty" series of games on the PlayStation platform.
Phil Spencer, head of Microsoft's Xbox, said on his personal Twitter that the company has signed an agreement with Sony's PlayStation, and will continue to offer the "Call of Duty" series of games on the PlayStation platform after completing the acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
However, Phil Spencer only stated that he will continue to provide the "Call of Duty" series of games to Sony in the future, but it is not yet confirmed whether Activision Blizzard's other game works will also be released on the PlayStation platform.
Sony's decision to sign an agreement with Microsoft may be due to the current court ruling and the attitudes expressed by regulators in various countries, which all indicate that Microsoft has a great chance of successfully completing Activision Blizzard. In addition, the evidence submitted by Microsoft during the court proceedings not only revealed Sony's recent investment in the gaming business and its market layout policies, but also exposed its upcoming game console hardware promotion plans. Therefore, the decision to reach a consensus with Microsoft may also be to avoid more internal information from becoming court evidence and being exposed.
Previously, Sony had consistently argued that Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard would impact competition in the gaming market. Microsoft, however, emphasized that even with the Activision Blizzard acquisition, it would still provide its games to competitors on an equal footing. However, in response to criticism surrounding its inclusion of "Starfield" and the new "Indiana Jones" game as platform exclusives, Microsoft stated that it was primarily concerned with the current market competition with Sony, requiring additional incentives to attract players. This emphasised Sony's inherent ability to attract players with platform-exclusive content, while also garnering a significant market share.
We are pleased to announce that Microsoft and @PlayStation have signed a binding agreement to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation following the acquisition of Activision Blizzard. We look forward to a future where players globally have more choice to play their favorite games.
- Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) July 16, 2023
