Phil Spencer, the new CEO of Microsoft games, confirmed that the best-selling video game series “call of duty” will continue to be released on the Playstation platform. Two days ago, Microsoft announced that it plans to buy Activision Blizzard, a game publisher, for $68.7 billion.
Spencer wrote on twitter on Thursday afternoon: “I had a good communication with Sony’s leaders this week.”. “I confirm that after acquiring Activision Blizzard, we will abide by all existing agreements and hope to continue to maintain the call of duty of PlayStation. Sony is an important part of our industry and we cherish our relationship.”
This is generally consistent with the precedent of Microsoft’s previous acquisition of the game industry. For example, the action game deathloop released by Bethesda is the exclusive timing game console of Sony Playstation 5, although it was launched only after Microsoft acquired Bethesda’s parent company zenimax media in 2020.
Microsoft is unlikely to make any Activision Blizzard game an exclusive Xbox game, let alone a very popular call of Duty series. For more than a year, Spencer has made it clear that Microsoft is more concerned about player participation and subscription quantity than original hardware or software sales. Even last year’s Xbox killer application halo infinite can be used on steam. In Microsoft’s view, exclusivity will only limit the potential audience of the game.
Analysis: Microsoft’s $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard is a mixed blessing for gamers
Assuming the acquisition is successful, Spencer will be responsible for Activision Blizzard by assuming a new position as the head of Microsoft’s new game department, and let Microsoft add the products in the classic product catalog of Activision and Blizzard to the Xbox game pass.
This may also trigger an additional wave of acquisitions in the near future, as competitors either gather to compete with Microsoft or depreciate significantly in anticipation of their own sale.
Microsoft announced Tuesday morning that it had signed an agreement to buy Activision Blizzard. Activision Blizzard is a California based holding company responsible for managing Activision (call of duty, skylanders) and Blizzard (Warcraft, StarCraft, overwatch). The $68.7 billion cash deal is the largest acquisition in Microsoft’s history and three times the amount of LinkedIn acquired by the technology giant in 2017.
The impact of the deal on the video game industry cannot be overemphasized. Activision Blizzard is the largest single third-party developer in the market, relying entirely on its large-scale franchise. Call of duty features a mobile app, warzone, which can almost print money. The series releases a new game every year for game consoles and PCs, which can reliably move millions of devices. The pioneer of 2021 and the Black Ops of 2020 – the cold war is 2021, the best-selling game of No. 1 and No. 2.