If Microsoft acquires Activision, what would it mean for the gaming community? Would it be good or bad? Well, there are many opinions regarding the matter with both sides making strong points.
The Story So Far
The Activision Blizzard acquisition of Microsoft caused shockwaves to the gaming community. It does seem unlikely that anything will ultimately stop the nearly $70 billion acquisition. Furthermore, the longer this goes, the more ridiculous these arguments become. The one who raised the most concerns, however, is the gaming giant of Japan, Sony.
According to Sony, the main problem with the acquisition of Microsoft is game exclusivity. If Microsoft acquires Activision Blizzard, Sony feels threatened. It also becomes possible that Microsoft will make Call of Duty exclusive to Microsoft consoles. If they are right about this, millions of PlayStation players will miss out on future titles of the best-selling franchise.
While Sony’s concerns are valid, they do not have the moral high ground, especially on game exclusivity. In recent memory, Sony acquired multiple games to be exclusive on their own console PlayStation. Their concerns reek of hypocrisy. Even more, they are the last people on Earth to act concerned about the gaming community being left out of playing games.
Microsoft put online a new website addressing its planned acquisition of Activision Blizzard. It’s as if they made a way to try to convince regulators to approve the deal. The website’s purpose is also to pull in the gaming community to support their acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
The Hot Take
If you have to make a website to convince people you should be able to buy a company, maybe you shouldn’t be able to buy a company. Microsoft’s move to make a website to convince regulators to approve the deal is absurd. They even have an entire page of quotes that are supposed to help convince regulators that this is a good move and not problematic.
“In January, we provided a signed agreement to Sony to guarantee Call of Duty on PlayStation, with feature and content parity, for at least several more years beyond the current Sony contract, an offer that goes well beyond typical gaming industry agreements.”
– Phil Spencer, Microsoft Gaming CEO
This is the first of many references that try to pitch Sony as being okay with this when Sony has made it excruciatingly clear they are very much not okay with this, and Jim Ryan has referenced this deal specifically in his quotes:
“Microsoft has only offered for Call of Duty to remain on PlayStation for three years after the current agreement between Activision and Sony ends. After almost 20 years of Call of Duty on PlayStation, their proposal was inadequate on many levels and failed to take into account the impact on our gamers. We want to guarantee PlayStation gamers continue to have the highest quality Call of Duty experience, and Microsoft’s proposal undermines this principle.”
– Jim Ryan
The quote from Jim Ryan makes it clear that Sony not agreeing with the acquisition. The constant back and forth between Microsoft and Sony might slow down the acquisition, but it is unlikely that the deal will fall through.
Again, Microsoft has only committed to making Call of Duty available on PlayStation for three years. However, past the current deal, there is no guarantee that it stays on the platform indefinitely. If Microsoft acquires Activision, what next?
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