Microsoft claims: "Sony prevented games from reaching Game Pass"

After Sony spoke out against the Activision-Blizzard acquisition and the potential exclusivity of Call of Duty for Xbox, Microsoft is hitting back

Giving in Nishi

11/08/2022

Thursday, August 11, 2022, 5:21 p.m. Updated: 5:22 p.m.

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It was only at the beginning of the year that Microsoft's giant deal that acquired Activision-Blaziard worth $68.7 billion was reported, and raised quite a few eyebrows in the industry.

Although the transaction has not yet been approved and is undergoing approvals by all the relevant regulatory bodies, one of which is the Administrative Council for Economic Protection in Brazil.

Last week, documents from the same board revealed that Sony is not happy (to say the least) with the upcoming Microsoft deal, and claimed that an exclusive Call of Duty title (owned by Activision) could cause sharp declines in Sony's sales, because the title is so commercially and cognitively successful and it is considered For one that affects the players' console purchase.

Sony: "Call of Duty titles are a decisive factor in the players' console purchase process" (photo: official website, Activision)

Sony claimed that a game like Call of Duty that would come exclusively to Microsoft's Game Pass would prevent it from competing properly in the market, and that there is no real competition in the market for a title like this.

Now Microsoft is releasing a 27-page document and submitting it to the board of directors, where it addresses Sony's claims.

Microsoft's first claim is about the issue of exclusivity.

Microsoft stated that "exclusivity agreements have always been part of Sony's strategy that strengthened its position in the gaming industry".

It was also noted that Sony pays developers considerable sums in order to prevent their games from reaching the Game Pass services, thereby preventing its continued growth and development.

Microsoft: "Sony paid the keys and prevented games from being released for the Game Pass service" (photo: official website, Microsoft)

Microsoft claimed that the success of the Call of Duty titles was inflated by Sony, and the success of the Game Pass service came even before the acquisition of Activision-Blizzard, which has not yet come to fruition.

Microsoft also claimed that Sony is not afraid of the purchase itself, but of the fact that the Game Pass service undermines the model that Sony advocates - where players are required to purchase the console and its exclusive contents.

Furthermore, Microsoft stated in the report that the move of making Voice of Duty exclusive is not as profitable for it as Sony claims, and there is logic behind it: the company will miss out on the PlayStation players who will purchase in the game's digital stores. Furthermore, Phil Spencer has already explicitly stated in the past that Xbox There is no intention to "break up player communities".

Sony is not satisfied (to say the least) with the purchase of Activision-Blizzard (photo: official website, Microsoft)

This is a somewhat hypocritical statement on Sony's part, which seems to have come under unnecessary pressure.

Not only has the company advocated exclusivity and purchases exclusively for its consoles, it has also created exclusive content agreements in Call of Duty that were released exclusively for the PlayStation consoles.

Like the zombie modes.

It is important to note that beyond Sony, as of now, no official regulatory body has objected to the purchase, and according to the way things look, if everything goes well, it will be approved by the beginning of next summer.

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• Sony

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• PlayStation