What about Call of Duty on Xbox Game Pass because of Microsoft’s planned acquisition of Activision Blizzard? There are new developments.
For nine months, the biggest deal in industry history has more or less been hanging in the air: Microsoft is buying Activision Blizzard for a staggering $68.7 billion. However, antitrust authorities still have something to say about it.
The British Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) wants to take a close look at the billion-dollar deal, and the EU has also announced such steps. Apparently, the sales heavyweight Call of Duty is in the spotlight, specifically the question of Microsoft exclusivity.
What has now been revealed
Xbox chief Phil Spencer stated shortly after the proposed deal was announced that Microsoft wanted to respect all Sony and Activision contracts and keep Call of Duty on the PlayStation.
Had good calls this week with leaders at Sony. I confirmed our intent to honour all existing agreements upon acquisition of Activision Blizzard and our desire to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation. Sony is an important part of our industry, and we value our relationship.
– Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) January 20, 2022
Now Microsoft became even more concrete. As the publisher announced in a (statement) to the CMA, part of the agreements between Sony and Activision was that Microsoft would not be allowed to bring Call of Duty branded games to Game Pass for several years
The footnote in the wording:
“The agreement between Activision Blizzard and Sony includes.
Restrictions on Activision Blizzard’s ability to offer Call of Duty titles on Game Pass for a number of years “
This wording suggests that Microsoft is unlikely to offer the new CoD MW 2 on Game Pass. On the other hand, it remains unclear what will happen with the next Call of Duty, which will probably not be released until 2024 after a year’s break. At least until it is made clear how long the agreements between Sony and Activision will remain valid.
Anyway, the deal between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard is not yet in the bag, as the extensive correspondence between Microsoft and antitrust authorities confirms. So we will have to wait and see how the whole thing plays out.
