The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is once again the protagonist regarding the purchase of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft. The UK regulatory agent it is in a second phase of investigation due to the entity’s concerns about the agreement.
As revealed from Gamesindustry.biz, the CMA believes that the acquisition may harm PlayStation and other subscription services. This is due to the fact that Microsoft could make all the new content it receives exclusive and, together with other tools, surpass other competitors such as Google, Amazon or Nvidia in the streaming technology section.
“There is a realistic prospect of a substantial decrease in competition in game consoles, multi-game subscription services and cloud gaming services,” they say from the institution. CMA members firmly believe that the fact that a console has many players leads to a call effect .
“The CMA is concerned that having full control over this powerful catalogue, especially in light of Microsoft’s already strong position in game consoles, operating systems and cloud infrastructure, could result in Microsoft hurting consumers by affect the ability of Sony, Microsoft’s closest gaming rival, to compete, as well as that of other existing rivals and potential new entrants that might otherwise generate healthy competition through innovative multi-game subscription and gaming services on the cloud”
Although the works of Activision Blizzard do not reach the launch of subscription services such as Xbox Game Pass, from the CMA they point out that “after the merger, Microsoft would obtain control of this important contribution and could use it to undermine the competitiveness of its rivals“.
The Xbox Defense
Faced with these arguments, Xbox has decided to step out by responding to the CMA. For the division led by Phil Spencer, all these issues are “out of place” and it is indicated that Sony is in such a position of power that it can afford to raise the price of the PS5 “without fear of losing market share”.
Xbox believes that if all PlayStation Call of Duty players made the jump to Xbox, the PlayStation player base would still be significantly larger than Xbox.” He notes that Sony released over 280 exclusive titles, both first party and third party. , in 2021, which is a figure five times higher than that of Xbox.
The company argues that the CMA “incorrectly relies on self-serving statements from Sony that significantly exaggerate the importance of Call of Duty for them and do not take into account Sony’s clear ability to respond competitively.
And it is that Xbox is clear that “players will ultimately benefit from this greater competition and choice.” Xbox maintains that the main claim with the purchase of Activision Blizzard is bring your games to Xbox Game Pass. He emphasizes that Call of Duty will not be exclusive, a fact that we already knew.
In conclusion, Microsoft points out that if gamers choose to leave PlayStation for Xbox, it will be because Xbox offers different options in its approach to how games can be purchased. In any case, the CMA will give its preliminary verdict in January and a final decision on March 1. Saudi Arabia and Brazil have already given the go-ahead for the purchase.
