The Microsoft purchase of Activision Blizzard It continues to cause conflict between it and its closest rival in recent years: Sony. It seems that the obstacles that the Japanese company has put up have become more frustrating than ever, as recent information shared in The New York Times indicates that Sony did not give any response to a possible tenure contract of 10 years for Call of Duty in PlayStation offered by Microsoft.
At the beginning of the year the purchase was announced. Despite having already passed 10 months, No one knows for sure if this will come to fruition. The main culprit is Sony, which was quick to oppose allowing a company like Activision Blizzard to become part of its competition. Although it has well-known franchises such as Candy Crush
According to Sony itselfthe franchise Call of Duty It is very important to him, since it “influences users’ decisions to buy consoles.” In other words, if these games were to become Xbox exclusives, they could significantly affect Sony’s ability to compete in the market. Basically, a scenario close to a “monopoly” in favor of Microsoft would be being considered.
The oversight of many countries in the case of Microsoft vs. sony by Call of Duty
Under this argument, Sony began a crossroads with various governments around the world to avoid legalizing the transaction. In total there are 16 regulatory bodies that are involved in this situation and only two (from Brazil and Saudi Arabia) have given their approval. Meanwhile, agencies in the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union have indicated that they will investigate further.
Since the process seems to be going to take much longer, Microsoft has tried to negotiate with Sony for the availability of Call of Duty. First, Phil Spencer commented that the idea was that the franchise would continue on PlayStation, at least “for a while longer than the current contract indicates.” This did not seem to please Sony, as the company called the proposal “inadequate on many levels”.
In the most recent move, Microsoft proposed to Sony a permanent contract of Call of Duty on PlayStation for 10 more years. On this occasion, there was not even a categorical rejection, but a sepulchral silence. That is, the company preferred not to give any response.
It seems that the mere idea that COD reaches Xbox Game Pass makes Sony very uncomfortable, which constantly repeats messages like “this would have negative implications for gamers and the industry.” For its part, Microsoft has accused Sony of “misleading regulators” by “exaggerating the importance of Call of Duty».
For now, no party has given in on their interests and many regulatory entities have yet to advance in their investigations.
Fuente: The New York Times
