Australia’s Under-16 Social Media Ban Sparks Global Debate and Early Challenges 
SUPERFORTUNE Launches AI-Powered Mobile App, Expanding Beyond Web3 Into $392 Billion Metaphysics Market 
Citi Appoints Ryan Ellis as Head of Markets Sales for Australia and New Zealand 
Treasury Wine Estates Shares Plunge on Earnings Warning Amid U.S. and China Weakness 
Harris Associates Open to Revised Paramount Skydance Bid for Warner Bros Discovery 
SpaceX Edges Toward Landmark IPO as Elon Musk Confirms Plans 
Elliott Management Takes $1 Billion Stake in Lululemon, Pushes for Leadership Change 
Republicans Raise National Security Concerns Over Intel’s Testing of China-Linked Chipmaking Tools 
MetaX IPO Soars as China’s AI Chip Stocks Ignite Investor Frenzy 
Moore Threads Stock Slides After Risk Warning Despite 600% Surge Since IPO 
Apple Opens iPhone to Alternative App Stores in Japan Under New Competition Law 
Biren Technology Targets Hong Kong IPO to Raise $300 Million Amid China’s AI Chip Push 
SK Hynix Considers U.S. ADR Listing to Boost Shareholder Value Amid Rising AI Chip Demand 
OpenAI Explores Massive Funding Round at $750 Billion Valuation 
Jared Isaacman Confirmed as NASA Administrator, Becomes 15th Leader of U.S. Space Agency 
Volaris and Viva Agree to Merge, Creating Mexico’s Largest Low-Cost Airline Group 
As many already know, Microsoft is in the process of acquiring Activision Blizzard. The deal is currently under review by regulators in various parts of the world, but the Xbox’s parent company has also found itself in an ongoing spat with Sony regarding the future of “Call of Duty” on PlayStation.
PlayStation president Jim Ryan has responded to Microsoft’s recent statement, maintaining that “Call of Duty” will remain available on Sony’s gaming console. And Ryan said the commitment that Xbox’s parent company made “was inadequate on many levels.”
Microsoft said in January that future “Call of Duty” games will still be released on PlayStation even after Sony’s existing deals with Activision. Then, last week, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer revealed it even provided a “signed agreement” to Sony to reflect this commitment.
Spencer’s statement came shortly after the United Kingdom’s Competition, and Markets Authority said Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard “could substantially lessen competition.” But after the signed agreement concerning “Call of Duty” was revealed, Ryan called out Spencer for supposedly making a “private business discussion” public knowledge.
“Microsoft has only offered for ‘Call of Duty’ to remain on PlayStation for three years after the current agreement between Activision and Sony ends,” Ryan told GamesIndustry.biz. “Their proposal was inadequate on many levels and failed to take account of the impact on our gamers.”
Activision Blizzard has a number of very popular video game franchises that would become Microsoft-owned IPs once the acquisition is completed. But the focus has been cast on “Call of Duty” in recent responses Microsoft and Sony provided to regulators scrutinizing the $68.7 billion transaction.
It remains to be seen how Ryan’s response will affect regulators’ investigation of Microsoft and Activision Blizzard’s deal. But the potential of future “Call of Duty” games being exclusive to Xbox consoles and services is unsurprisingly one of the biggest considerations in reviewing the acquisition.
The focus on “Call of Duty’s” future availability on consoles amid the ongoing acquisition was expected because it is one of the biggest-selling IPs in the video game industry, not just in the first-person shooter segment. Activision revealed to the Washington Post last June that the franchise’s lifetime revenue has surpassed $30 billion after selling more than 425 million copies.
Photo by Marco Verch from Flickr under Creative Commons license
