Call of Duty, Overwatch and Diablo to come to Xbox Game Pass – New Phil Spencer comments
The giant deal ran into new obstacles
Activision Blizzard ‘s colossal acquisition of Xbox has continued to be at the center of gaming talk lately, and now it seems it has hit a new roadblock . In particular, we know that the acquisition that was first announced on January 18 is now in the middle of it . However, even though Activision Blizzard’s shareholders voted in favor, Microsoft also needs to get approvals from relevant regulators, such as the FTC, the European Union’s and UK’s equivalent body.
The new hurdle, then, is the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) , the UK’s competition regulator. Taking things a step further, the CMA confirmed last month that it had launched an investigation into the $68.7bn deal to see if it was fair or harmed competition. After gathering feedback from third parties with interests in the proposed deal, the CMA announced today that it has a number of concerns that need to be addressed.
Specifically, it emphasized that Microsoft and Activision Blizzard now have until September 8 to submit proposals that address its concerns, and that if appropriate proposals are not received, then the deal will be referred for further investigation. If this happens, during the second phase of investigations, the CMA will appoint an independent panel to examine the agreement in more detail and assess whether it is likely to result in a substantial lessening of competition.
The harsh stance of the British authority immediately triggered reactions from Microsoft, with Phil Spencer posting a detailed statement on the company’s official blog. In this context, he confirmed that the company’s goal is to make Activision-Blizzard’s games more accessible for everyone and thus intends to bring Call of Duty, Overwatch, Diablo, etc. on Xbox Game Pass.
We’re expanding choices in two ways: through the creation of Game Pass, which gives players a subscription option, and by bringing more games to mobile platforms, including through our cloud streaming technology.
Subscription services like Game Pass make gaming more accessible and help gamers around the world find their next favorite game. Game Pass enables developers to offer more games to more players, not fewer. We plan to make Activision Blizzard’s beloved game library – including Overwatch, Diablo and Call of Duty – available on Game Pass and grow these game communities. By bringing even more value to players, we hope to continue to grow Game Pass, expanding its reach to mobile phones and every connected device.
At the same time, Spencer wanted to clarify once and for all the issue of the exclusivity of Call of Duty and thus in the context of his new public position he emphasized:
We’ve heard that this deal could take franchises like Call of Duty out of the places where people play them today. That’s why, as we’ve said before, we’re committed to making the same version of Call of Duty available on PlayStation on the same day the game is released elsewhere. We will continue to enable people to play with each other on all platforms and devices.
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