Sony is making strange demands on Microsoft amid fears they’ll lose Call of Duty fans
Microsoft wants to buy the game company Activision Blizzard. The studio is known for globally successful titles such as World of Warcraft, Diablo and Call of Duty. Microsoft competitor Sony does not like it at all and is now defending itself with bizarre allegations.
This is the background:
In the MeinMMO podcast we analyze the purchase:
This is what Sony now “demands”: The UK competition authority, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), is currently considering the purchase of Microsoft. There, experts discuss which arguments could possibly speak against the takeover.
In a new document lists various points, including competitiveness, concerns and explanations from all sides. One point in particular stands out. The document says:
Sony told the CMA that even if Call of Duty remains available on PlayStation after the merger, the merged entity [Microsoft] could still make partial exclusions by magnifying the differences between the Xbox and PlayStation versions of CoD. According to Sony, gamers can expect that Call of Duty on Xbox will get additional content and improved interoperability with console hardware, in addition to any Xbox Game Pass membership benefits. Sony states that these factors will influence gamers’ choice of consoles.
Translated from legal terms, this means: Sony demands that even if Call of Duty remains playable on the PlayStation after the takeover, Microsoft is not allowed to publish any exclusive content and CoD is not allowed to run better on the Xbox than on the PlayStation.
It remains to be seen whether it is technically possible at all to intentionally change the versions in terms of performance in such a way that the Xbox is fundamentally better. The other arguments sound strange, however, because Sony itself has been pursuing such practices for years, like the games journalist and industry expert Paul Tassi on Forbes explained.
Sony is already doing exactly what they fear Microsoft will do
For several years now, PlayStation players have received many exclusive benefits in Call of Duty:
In fact, the exclusive bonuses in Black Ops: Cold War were so enormous that even for PlayStation players, it was too much. There were additional Battle Pass tiers, additional experience points, and more loadout slots.
In addition, in the latest CoD installment, Modern Warfare 2, which will be released soon, PlayStation players had an extra whole weekend in the beta to test the game. There is also a skin package for the release on the PlayStation and an exclusive package for PS Plus every season.
The campaign of CoD: Modern Warfare 2 will start soon. Here is the trailer:
According to Tassi, the whole discussion is a huge mudslinging, in which both sides put forward flimsy and often hypocritical arguments, with the current statements from Sony probably putting the crown on it all.
Incidentally, the CMA does not see the console manufacturer Nintendo as a competitor, since these are “family consoles”.
How things will continue at Microsoft, Activision Blizzard and Sony remains open. As things stand at the moment, the CMA, at least, seems convinced that the acquisition poses some risk to competition.
What’s interesting is that Xbox Game Pass is even smaller than Sony’s subscription service:
Microsoft Reveals How Much Money They Make From Xbox Game Pass – How Much More Does Sony Make From PS Plus?
Reference-mein-mmo.de