Chatter online has been all over the Microsoft Activision Blizzard acquisition. When Microsoft made the massive bid to bring the company under the Xbox umbrella, the move was anything but smooth. There were several outcries from Sony over the matter, and it caused regulators to get involved. Now it’s been a waiting game to see if these regulators would approve the purchase or not. However, one new update from the UK CMA regulator is actually good news for Microsoft.
The significant component of this deal has been Call of Duty. This behemoth of a video game franchise was considered to soon become exclusive to Microsoft’s line of platforms. However, it’s clear that Microsoft doesn’t want to see the franchise become exclusive. In fact, they don’t see it as a win financially if Call of Duty becomes exclusive to the Xbox brand. But with so much attention on the game potentially being locked behind the Xbox brand had ultimately prompted Microsoft to make several contract deals for its competitors. These contracts guaranteed them Call of Duty games at launch for their platforms if this deal went through.
Sony is one company that wasn’t keen on the contract and instead continued to be vocal about this deal not going through. Initially, the CMA noted that there were incentives for Microsoft to make Call of Duty an exclusive, but after further comments were made and adjustments to the CMA’s math, it’s clear that making Call of Duty an exclusive would not be in Microsoft’s interests. So at the moment, thanks to the recent CMA PDF update, the CMA has sided with Microsoft on that front, which is one major battle the company has overcome. But this deal is not approved quite yet, and regulators have until next month to make their decision.
Now the focus has pivoted towards cloud gaming and what that could mean if Microsoft acquires Activision Blizzard. It should be interesting to see what comments Sony makes about these recent findings from the CMA. Likewise, we wonder if Sony will start working on an alternative to Call of Duty. After all, Microsoft has previously stated that ten years is more than enough time for Sony to make their own exclusive alternative for Call of Duty fans. But again, we’ll just have to wait and see what the regulators rule in regard to the Activision Blizzard acquisition.
