Sony's current Call of Duty marketing deal is "preventing" Activision's big-money shooter series from appearing on Xbox Game Pass, Microsoft has said .
The details come from Xbox's full response to documents filed by the UK's Competition and Markets Authority last week, in which the regulator raised concerns over Microsoft's ongoing $68 billion bid. to buy Activision Blizzard.
Sony's current marketing agreement with Call of Duty will give gamers early access to game content on Sony's platform and allow the integration of the PlayStation logo into advertising.
In Microsoft's response, the Xbox maker quoted Phil Spencer's January 20, 2022 tweet in a footnote, stating that Microsoft intends to "fulfill all existing agreements." on the acquisition of Activision Blizzard." said.
Microsoft continues to say that the current deal with Activision Blizzard and Sony "contains restrictions on Activision Blizzard's ability to guarantee Call of Duty games on Game Pass for years to come."
What we don't know is the nature of these "restrictions" and whether they entail blocking the launch of Call of Duty games on Game Pass or any penalties (e.g. compensation) against Activision Blizzard. For users who download a copy and transfer it to Sony.
I also don't know how long these restrictions will last. It’s not yet clear if this will go beyond ending the current deal for certain Call of Duty games, or if existing games will continue. You can’t do that However, Microsoft apparently chose to include this information to highlight the possibility that future COD inclusion in Game Pass could be a key point in approving the offer. Takeover by CMA. One suggestion here is that Microsoft may not be able to put COD games on Game Pass even if they wanted toMoreover, Sony is accused of owning its own games, while Sony already controls games that are subject to subscriptions.
All of this also fuels the ongoing debate about competition in this space, which could also affect the deal's rollover.Meanwhile, the CMA is concerned that Microsoft's acquisition will give it an unfair advantage in the console market.. On the other hand, Microsoft responded by saying that its deal will give players more options, and its competition with Sony led its rival to adopt its own subscription service.