Microsoft has reportedly offered Sony options for including Call of Duty on its PlayStation Plus subscription service. The Federal Trade Commission is now moving to block Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard and has concerns that, should the deal be approved, Microsoft may be hurting competitors by keeping franchises such as Call of Duty and others under the Activision Blizzards umbrella off competing video game consoles and services.
As reported by Bloomberg, the option to sell Call of Duty via PlayStation Plus was promised along with a previously-stated Microsoft offering to Sony of ten years of Call of Duty on Sonys hardware should the acquisition of Activision Blizzard be completed. The offers are not the first deals that Microsoft offered to Sony back in September, it was reported that Microsoft’s prior offer to Sony included keeping Call of Duty on PlayStation consoles for 10 years.
Microsoft and Team Xbox have recently offered a deal to Sony which will let PlayStation giants put Call of Duty games in PlayStation Plus stores. It may also be remembered that Microsoft has already stated that it plans on placing Call of Duty in Xbox Game Pass should a deal come to fruition, with Sony saying PlayStation Plus is leading significantly in terms of subscriber numbers. Microsoft Reportedly Offers Sony Rights to Put Call of Duty on its PlayStation Plus Subscription Service.
Microsoft President Brad Smith provided further details on his offer to Sony last week in an editorial for The Wall Street Journal. Just recently, Microsoft chief Phil Spencer openly stated that the publisher has offered to place Call of Duty on Nintendo platforms with 10 years guaranteed, and to keep Call of Duty on Steam with a 10-year commitment, too. We have seen this strategy play out before, as Microsoft agreed to a 10-year deal that allowed Sony to continue publishing the Call of Duty franchise on its platforms, while Xbox chief Phil Spencer announced a similar 10-year Xbox deal with Nintendo just last week.
The potential for Microsoft to dominate the console market with Call of Duty exclusivity after an acquisition is a major argument that regulators are making in order to challenge this, and that is why Microsoft has been openly offering a lot of concessions lately. Bloomberg’s ToA has learned Sony has not agreed to a deal as Sony continues its fight against the merger, which will put Microsoft in control of the industry, and Call of Duty, titles. Meanwhile, Valve CEO Gabe Newell said that the company does not need a decade-long deal, but is happy to keep working with Microsoft following a settlement. And Nintendo recently agreed with Microsoft’s proposal to place Call of Duty on Nintendo devices.
