Microsoft buys Activision Blizzard

[Zed Duke of Banville]

Microsoft have their ducks in a row:

One step closer to Bobby Kotick becoming the next CEO of Microsoft.

 

[Caim]

Microsoft have their ducks in a row:

One step closer to Bobby Kotick becoming the next CEO of Microsoft.

Classic monkey's paw: Bobby is no longer the CEO of Blactivision King, Microsoft buys them out and he becomes the CEO of that instead.

 

[Infinitron]

https://www.eurogamer.net/microsoft-no-path-to-activision-blizzard-deal-without-call-of-duty

Microsoft: no path to Activision Blizzard deal without Call of Duty​

"Do you want to kill a deal and cement Sony's position?"


Microsoft will not consider a version of its proposed $68.7bn Activision Blizzard buyout where it cannot also get its hands on Call of Duty, company president Brad Smith has said.

The UK's Competition and Markets Authority regulator previously suggested Activision sell off Call of Duty first, in order to make Microsoft's buyout more palatable amidst anti-competition concerns.

Speaking yesterday in Brussels at a press briefing attended by Eurogamer, Smith said Microsoft didn't "see a viable path" to a deal where Call of Duty was owned by someone else.

Smith's statement also ruled out an even unlikelier scenario suggested by the CMA as a potential remedy to the deal passing through UK regulation: that Activision Blizzard splits and Activision itself is sold off, so Microsoft only buys Blizzard and the company's mobile arm King.

"We just don't see a viable path to sell the Activision studio or Call of Duty game to someone else," Smith said. "So if you're the CMA in the UK, I think you're probably going to want to make a decision.

"Do you want to kill a deal and cement Sony's position in its 80 percent share in the EU, or say 70 percent share globally, in a market where it's been a super dominant company for 20 years?

"Or do you want to let the future go forward with behavioural guardrails and remedies, and bring this title to 150 million more people? I think that's the fundamental choice that most regulators are going to need to address around the world."

Smith repeatedly stated that Microsoft had a minority share in the console market compared to Sony, in figures that left out Nintendo - a company it had trumpeted a 10-year deal with just hours before.

"It is a market in which Sony has an 80 percent share, Xbox has 20 percent share," Smith said, comparing Xbox and PlayStation. "Globally, it's about 70/30. In Japan, it's 96 to four. And while there are some fluctuations over time, these numbers have been remarkably steady for two decades.

"Even last year, when Sony suffered constraints in its supply chain and it saw its numbers dip, they came back strong in the fourth quarter as their supply chain recover. By our calculation, on a global basis. Sony outsold Microsoft in the fourth quarter by a margin of 69 to 31, pretty much consistent with the global market shares we've seen for 20 years."

For now, however, Sony is refusing to play ball with Microsoft's attempts to get its Activision Blizzard buyout agreed to by regulators. And without Sony, yesterday's twin announcements of deals with Nintendo and Nvidia felt lacking.

 

[Morgoth]

Phil Spencer Talks About How Activision Blizzard Deal is Important to Xbox; What’ll Happen if it’s Blocked​

Ule Lopez • Feb 27, 2023 01:11 PM EST
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Things will only get more intense for the Activision Blizzard acquisition as intense scrutiny from government regulators across the nations continues to show. Currently, Xbox is helping provide competitors with amicable deals, such as the recently closed partnerships with Nintendo and NVIDIA. However, the real problematic factor in the deal is Sony, which currently has been placing many of the hurdles that the company had to deal with.


Today, Phil Spencer chimed in with his thoughts on the matter. In a recent conversation with The Times, Phil also talked about how the deal with Activision Blizzard wouldn't really make much of an impact if it were blocked. The current Xbox lead stated that even if the acquisition falls through, the Xbox brand will continue to move forward regardless. Spencer had the following to say regarding the hypothetical scenario in which the deal is blocked:

This is an important acquisition for us. It’s not some linchpin to the long term — Xbox will exist if this deal doesn’t go through.


The executive also expressed frustration regarding the sxcrutiny offered by the government authorities, stating that it hurts competition and makes those in direct competition (them being Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo itself in this case) weaker as a result of this.


Competition is us trying to get stronger. I don’t have great rationale for … how better competition in consoles is somehow hurtful for consumers. Because to me, having us, Sony, and Nintendo doing well in the console market — all of us with strengths and uniqueness and content and capabilities — gives consumers more choice. I’d hate to see consoles go to where phones are, where there are only two manufacturers. And, right now, we have three good competitors.


In the same breath, Spencer also talked about how the regulators don't have sufficient knowledge regarding the matter at hand, which has made things more difficult for Xbox in the long run. Regardless of his thoughts on the matter, Phil is still willing to help the regulators in whatever they need help with. Here's what Phil Spencer said on the matter:


Most of the time in my career at Xbox as I’ve met with government regulators, there’s been a real lack of knowledge about the games industry. I’ve appreciated spending time with them and in certain cases helping to educate. I think for a lot of the regulators, this is the first time they’ve looked at this industry.


Stay tuned for more developments in this currently ongoing story.

No, Phil, if the deal falls through, that's actually good for competition.

 

[Infinitron]

The toll has been paid: https://www.reuters.com/markets/dea...osoft-activision-deal-sources-say-2023-03-02/

Exclusive: Microsoft set to win EU nod on Activision with licensing offer, sources say​

BRUSSELS, March 2 (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) is expected to secure EU antitrust approval for its $69 billion acquisition of Activision (ATVI.O) with its offer of licensing deals to rivals, three people familiar with the matter said, helping it to clear a major hurdle.

Microsoft announced the Activision bid in January last year, its biggest ever, to take on leaders Tencent (0700.HK) and Sony (6758.T), in the booming videogaming market and to venture in the metaverse which is virtual online worlds where people can work, play and socialise.

The European Commission, which is scheduled to decide on the deal by April 25, is not expected to demand that Microsoft sell assets to win its approval, the people said.

In addition to the licensing deals for rivals, Microsoft may also have to offer other behavioural remedies to allay concerns of other parties than Sony, one of the people said. Such remedies typically refer to the future conduct of the merged company.

Activision shares, which jumped 1.8% in pre-market trading after the Reuters' story was published, were up 2.6% in late trade.

Microsoft President Brad Smith last month said the U.S. software group was ready to offer rivals licensing deals to address antitrust concerns but it would not sell Activision's lucrative "Call of Duty" franchise.

Smith said it was not feasible or realistic to think that one game or one slice of Activision can be carved out and separated from the rest.

The EU competition enforcer declined to comment.

Microsoft said it was "committed to offering effective  and  easily  enforceable solutions  that address the European Commission's concerns."

"Our commitment to grant long term 100% equal access to  Call of Duty to Sony, Steam,  NVIDIA and others  preserves the deal's benefits to gamers and developers and increases competition in the market," a Microsoft spokesperson said.

Last month, Microsoft said it had signed 10-year licensing deals with Nintendo (7974.T) and Nvidia (NVDA.O) that will bring Call of Duty to their gaming platforms, with the agreements conditional on a green light for the Activision deal.

The deal faces regulatory headwinds in Britain, where the UK competition agency has suggested that Microsoft divests Call of Duty to address its concerns while the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has asked a judge to block the deal.

 

[lukaszek]

its quite sneaky. Who will pay full price for cod on other platforms when you can have it as part of game pass?

 

[anvi]

Dead gaming

 

[Infinitron]

Sony whining: https://www.eurogamer.net/sony-says...-the-games-final-level-or-after-later-updates

Sony says Microsoft may release a PlayStation version of Call of Duty "where bugs and errors emerge only on the game's final level or after later updates"​

UPDATE: Microsoft responds.

ORIGINAL STORY 5.09pm: Sony has suggested a number of ways Microsoft could hinder Call of Duty on PlayStation should regulators approve Microsoft's proposed $69bn takeover of Activision Blizzard, including purposefully releasing a version with bugs and errors.

A new document from 22nd February 2023 has been released containing Sony's observations on remedies from the UK's Competition and Markets Authority. One section in particular is focused on the "different mechanisms available to Microsoft to avoid its obligations" concerning the Call of Duty franchise.

In short, this is Sony's view on how Microsoft could withhold access to existing or future Call of Duty games to "impair PlayStation's competitiveness".

The strategies Sony suggests include: raising the price of Call of Duty on PlayStation; degrading the quality and performance of the game on PlayStation compared to Xbox; degrading the game to ignore PlayStation-specific features; restricting, degrading, or not prioritising investment in CoD multiplayer on PlayStation; and making the game available on a subscription service only on Game Pass.

Sony's position on technical and graphical quality is particularly eye-opening, suggesting Microsoft could purposefully sabotage PlayStation releases.

"For example, Microsoft might release a PlayStation version of Call of Duty where bugs and errors emerge only on the game's final level or after later updates. Even if such degradations could be swiftly detected, any remedy would likely come too late, by which time the gaming community would have lost confidence in PlayStation as a go-to venue to play Call of Duty," reads the document.

Further, Sony suggests Microsoft will always prioritise its own Xbox versions of games.

"Post-Transaction, Microsoft will need to make choices about the support it will provide to develop any PlayStation version of Call of Duty. Even if Microsoft operated in good faith, it would be incentivised to support and prioritise development of the Xbox version of the game, such as by using its best engineers and more of its resources," reads the document.

It's through these strategies that Sony believes a "behavioural commitment" from Microsoft to deliver Call of Duty to PlayStation owners "would be difficult". Sony claims Microsoft has "not shown any real commitment to reaching a negotiated outcome" and that the company "have dragged their feet, engaged only when they sensed the regulatory outlook was darkening, and favoured negotiating in the media over engaging with SIE."

Further, Microsoft's proposal "fails to provide adequate protection for PlayStation's access to Call of Duty or for competition. Instead, it reveals Microsoft's lack of commitment to ensuring full and equal access to Call of Duty, confirms the risks of a behavioural remedy outlined in the Guidelines, and reinforces SIE's belief that Microsoft intends to use Call of Duty strategically to dominate the gaming sector."

Eurogamer has contacted Microsoft for comment.

Over the course of Microsoft's attempted buyout of Activision Blizzard, the importance of Call of Duty has been hotly debated.

Recently, Microsoft struck a deal to bring Call of Duty to Nintendo's platforms in a bid to appease regulators.

Earlier this week, Microsoft claimed the CMA has significantly overcounted the potential impact of Call of Duty going exclusive to Xbox and PC.

The deadline for the CMA's final ruling on the deal is April 26th, a day after the deadline for European regulators.

UPDATE 6.14pm: Microsoft has responded to Sony's suggestion it could deliberately introduces bugs and errors into Call of Duty to make it unplayable on PlayStation, reiterating it has made a "guarantee of parity between Xbox and PlayStation on access to Call of Duty".

In a statement provided to Eurogamer, a Microsoft spokesperson said, "Since the CMA issued its Provisional Findings, we have offered solutions which address its concerns and increase the deal's benefits to UK players and game developers. These include a guarantee of parity between Xbox and PlayStation on access to Call of Duty and legally binding commitments to ensure that Call of Duty is available to at least 150 million more players on other consoles and cloud streaming platforms once the deal closes."

Referencing its proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard more generally, Microsoft added, "The decision now lies with the CMA on whether it will block this deal and protect Sony, the dominant market leader, or consider solutions that make more games available to more players."

 

[Morgoth]

What a childish shitshow.

 

[Konjad]

The only good ending would be all three companies getting bankrupt.

 

[Caim]

The only good ending would be all three companies getting bankrupt.

But then Nintendo would rise up, and while their games are generally good the company itself could use some work.

Or a ditch and a bullet.

 

[Elttharion]

The only good ending would be all three companies getting bankrupt.

Sony dies because they lost the COD revenue. Microsoft runs Acti/Blizzard into the ground like they do all their studios and IPs. Millions of angry gamers storm their Azure datacenters and destroy their servers, leading to Microsofts bankruptcy. The angry hordes parade Bill Gates body around the streets. We nuke Japan again so Nintendo dont get too upty.

The good ending.

 

[deuxhero]

Sony says Microsoft may release a PlayStation version of Call of Duty "where bugs and errors emerge only on the game's final level​

So two hours in?

 

[Lucumo]

Why is Microsoft whining about marketshare when they are selling an US-centric console which is garbage?

 

[KIss My Ass]

It's sad that Call of Doody is still relevant enough to sway the tides of a console war. I haven't played one in forever. Couldn't tell you the name of the one that came out last year, or the year before, or the year before that, etc. How fucking retarded do you have to be to still buy it year after year? I had a lot of fun with Black Ops 1 and that was enough for me.

 

[Lyric Suite]

The onset of soy woke faggots has made us all forget about a cancer that is still very prevalent, the retarded douchebag dudebros. We may not think much about those people anymore but they are still out there and they are still a significant source of decline.

 

[Infinitron]

How to have your merger approved by the EU: https://news.microsoft.com/2023/03/...-more-games-to-more-players-around-the-world/

Microsoft announces partnership with cloud gaming provider Boosteroid to bring more games to more players around the world​

KYIV, Ukraine, and REDMOND, Wash. — March 14, 2023 — Microsoft Corp. and Boosteroid on Tuesday announced a 10-year agreement to bring Xbox PC games to Boosteroid’s cloud gaming platform. Boosteroid, which has its software development team in Ukraine, recently surpassed 4 million users globally and has become the largest independent cloud gaming provider in the world. The agreement will also enable Activision Blizzard PC titles to be streamed by Boosteroid customers after Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard closes.

When combined with other partnerships recently announced by Microsoft, this means popular franchises such as “Call of Duty” will surpass more than 150 million additional players, and make games built by Xbox Game Studios, Bethesda and Activision Blizzard playable on multiple cloud gaming services and subscriptions.

“We believe in the power of games to bring people together. That’s why Xbox is committed to give everyone more ways to play their favorite games, across devices,” said Phil Spencer, CEO of Gaming, Microsoft. “Bringing Xbox PC games to Boosteroid members, including Activision Blizzard titles such as ‘Call of Duty’ once the deal closes, is yet another step in realizing that vision.”

“Boosteroid shares Microsoft’s vision of bringing games to as many people, places and platforms as possible. It has long been our goal to provide gamers with an opportunity to enjoy their favorite titles on any device close at hand,” said Ivan Shvaichenko, Boosteroid CEO. “Today’s announcement is yet another step in this direction. Also, with our development team based in Ukraine, we appreciate Microsoft’s ongoing commitment to Ukraine, and we will be working together on an initiative supporting our local game development community to invest further in the economic recovery of the country.”

Boosteroid has operated since 2017 and has its research and development operations in Ukraine, based mostly in Kyiv and Kharkiv. Despite having two offices in Kharkiv damaged by Russian missile attacks, the company has continued to innovate and grow during the past 13 months of war. Since the beginning of 2023 alone, it has announced new steps to bring added cloud-based gaming services to the Mac, Chromebooks, Android set-top boxes and LG TVs. It offers cloud game streaming through both browser-based and dedicated applications, including for Windows, Linux, Android, Android TV and the macOS.

“Microsoft partnering with Boosteroid is welcome news and further evidence of the company’s ongoing support for Ukraine,” said Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation. “Boosteroid’s Ukrainian dev team has built a world-class streaming platform under the most challenging circumstances and demonstrates the ingenuity and creativity of our citizens and local game developers.”

In addition to Ukraine itself, Boosteroid now serves gamers in the United States, United Kingdom and countries across the European Union. It operates through data center operations located in six U.S. states, including Microsoft’s home state of Washington, as well as in the U.K., France, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Slovakia, Romania, Ukraine and Serbia.
The gaming community is a vibrant part of Ukraine’s software ecosystem. Microsoft recently added support for the Ukrainian language for the Xbox console dashboard, PC and mobile apps. In spring 2023, Microsoft will launch PC Game Pass in Ukraine.

“This partnership builds on the $430 million in technology and financial assistance we have provided Ukraine since Russia’s unlawful invasion, and it exemplifies the steps we will continue to take to support Ukraine’s 160,000 software developers,” said Brad Smith, Microsoft Vice Chair and President. “It also adds to our recent agreements with Nintendo and NVIDIA, making even more clear to regulators that our acquisition of Activision Blizzard will make ‘Call of Duty’ available on far more devices than before.”

 

[Infinitron]

https://www.eurogamer.net/microsoft...-create-a-call-of-duty-competitor-in-10-years

Microsoft tells UK's CMA Sony could create Call of Duty competitor in 10 years​

God of Warzone.

In a heavily redacted response to the UK's Competition and Markets Authority relating to its proposed $69BN USD acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Microsoft has insisted Sony would be able to create its own Call of Duty alternative within the space of 10 years.

Microsoft's newly published document has been submitted in response to the CMA's recent Remedies Hearing, discussing stipulations the regulator may insist upon before it's prepared to approve the deal. And while much has been redacted, it predominantly presents Microsoft's arguments around why its proposed 10-year deal with Sony to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation, and its signed agreements with Nvidia, should be sufficient to satisfy the CMA's concerns.

Among all this, though, is the nugget from Microsoft that 10 years should be ample time for Sony to whip up a Call of Duty competitor of its own - while glossing over the rather obvious fact Activision's shooter has had over 20 years to build the kind of brand recognition that's turned it into the juggernaut gaming franchise it is today.

"Microsoft considers that a period of 10 years is sufficient for Sony, as a leading publisher and console platform, to develop alternatives to CoD," the company tells the CMA. "The 10-year year term will extend into the next console generation [Redacted]."

"Moreover," it adds, "the practical effect of the remedy will go beyond the 10-year period, since games downloaded in the final year of the remedy can continue to be played for the lifetime of that console (and beyond, with backwards compatibility)."

It is, of course, tempting to read that as tacit admission Microsoft is indeed planning to whisk Call of Duty away for an eternity of Xbox exclusivity once the 10 years is through, but it quickly follows up by once again insisting such a move wouldn't make sense.

"CoD is an entertainment franchise which is already nearly 20 years old," it writes. "[Redacted], Microsoft will need to secure the broadest distribution of the franchise and will be heavily incentivised to keep it on the PlayStation platform [Redacted]. Microsoft considers that having maintained CoD on PlayStation and grown its player base on Nintendo, GeForce Now and other cloud gaming platforms for a decade, it will have no incentive, or indeed ability, to take CoD exclusive."

The CMA is set to announce its decision on Microsoft's proposed Activision Blizzard buyout on 26th April, while the EU - which is currently seeking feedback from rivals and customers - will now finalise its decision on 22nd May. Microsoft recently won the ability to examine a treasure trove of internal documents from within Sony to help its ongoing case with the FTC.

 

[Alienman]

Good news boys. Microsoft like Disney are masters of running their franchises into the ground. Call of Duty will be no more in a year or two.

 

[Morgoth]

Dead gaming

The industry is bigger than ever, and still growing mate.

 

[Morgoth]

Good news boys. Microsoft like Disney are masters of running their franchises into the ground. Call of Duty will be no more in a year or two.

Except Microsoft isn't gonna run the franchise.

 

[anvi]

Dead gaming

The industry is bigger than ever, and still growing mate.

That's fake news, and companies lying to over inflate their value. The reality is people playing decade old GTA5 and Skyrim or terrible undeveloped online crap like DOTA, Rust, PUBG, and some dudebro shooters. And to think that GTA5 and Skyrim were shitty even compared to earlier games... Sad. Unfortunately I have some taste and I can't even get what I used to get in the past. I remember when there were actual gamers and people with brains out there, debating whether they preferred Tiberian Sun or Generals, or Supreme Commander. All those games are dead, whole genre is. Is that a growing sector of gaming?

I remember playing space games and being disappointed at how shit they were, imagining how they could be in the future. This is the future, and there's shitty ED, even shittier German bugfest X4, or fake game Star Citizen. Is that a growing and healthy sector?

Did you ever play UO or EQ? Ever wonder how an idea like that could be with a decent budget and modern technology? Again there were people waiting 30 years for something to improve on that formula and yet here we are... Entire genre turned to shit and then died. Is that growing? Not only did that genre die but the best parts of it went completely misunderstood and aggressively forgotten. Nobody wants or cares about that knowledge. People even bitch at me for bringing it up.

How about a new MOBA? Why is the best Mechwarrior a shitty old Crysis mod? Why did SimCity die out? How about just some good new versions of old classics? A new sports game like Speedball 2? A new System Shock type game? A new Police Quest, Alone in the Dark, Lemmings, etc? Even just shameless modern rip offs would be great if they were well made. But there's none of this. Just a tiny number of retarded AAA games that take 10 years to make and then a bunch of shit indie games.

 

[Ryzer]

anvi you have a decade worth of playtime of videogames if you play 1996-2004 games, including console games from that era( yes even some of them were good).
No need to always consume the new product and you still have some good recent indie games here and there.

 

[anvi]

That only takes me to 2014 :/ I love that era but studios today should be trying to remake classics like that and figure out ways to improve on each aspect. Instead the 20 year old games are still unbeaten, hardly anyone even tries, a few jank remakes.

 

[Morgoth]

anvi: Games are shit, I hate them, therefor, the industry is dead.

Reality: https://www.wepc.com/news/video-game-statistics/