2023-07-17 10:40:08
“Call of Duty” is a hit game series released in 2003 by Activision’s Infinity Ward studio. MARTIN MEISSNER / PA
The famous shooting game Call of Dutypublished by Activision Blizzard, will be maintained on Sony’s PlayStation consoles for at least ten years.
“We are pleased to announce that Microsoft and PlayStation have signed a binding agreement to retain Call of Duty on PlayStation following the acquisition of Activision Blizzard », tweeted Sunday night Phil spencerhead of Microsoft’s video game division.
The deal is the latest installment in a soap opera that has rocked the video game industry since January 18, 2022, when Microsoft announced the acquisition of Activision Blizzard for a record $69 billion ($61 billion). euros).
Observers have in particular feared that Microsoft assumes the exclusivity of the licenses of the first video game publisher in the United States, in particular that of the series Call of Duty whose annual episodes usually appear in the best-selling video game charts. The franchise thus brought in more than 30 billion dollars to its publisher, according to Activision figures.
Activision Blizzard also holds other attractive licenses such as Candy Crush, World of Warcraft or Diablo. This acquisition would make Microsoft the world’s third largest video game player in terms of revenue behind the Chinese Tencent and Japanese Sony, according to figures from the specialized firm Newzoo.
Read also: Activision Blizzard, a video game pioneer in turmoil
Blocking in USA and UK
The operation was approved by the European regulator last May. However, the project remains in the crosshairs of the competition authorities in the United States and the United Kingdom. The latter fear that this operation will allow Microsoft to lock access to Activision Blizzard games.
On July 11, a federal judge in San Francisco, however, dismissed the US competition authority, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which asked her to immediately suspend the takeover. The agency’s appeal was later dismissed on July 14. The first hearings in the FTC lawsuit will begin on August 2.
However, the American giant must also find common ground with the competition authority in the United Kingdom, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The latter blocked the merger in April and cited the risks of too much concentration of activities in the cloud gaming (the streaming video game).
The CMA first said “fear that the agreement will change the future of the market for cloud gaming, rapidly growing, leading to reduced innovation and less choice for UK gamers in the years to come”according to a communiqué. Rare fact in such a procedure: the British authority agreed to reconsider new proposals from Microsoft.
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In December, Phil Spencer had indicated that Microsoft had “committed to providing Call of Duty at Nintendo for ten years” if Activision was integrated into the American giant.
Read the portrait: From economic triumph to the disavowal of his employees, the winding journey of the boss of Activision
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