Microsoft and Sony have signed a “binding agreement” to keep the immensely popular first-person shooter video game series “Call of Duty” on the latter’s PlayStation consoles.
This deal concludes a long-standing dispute between the two companies that began in early January 2022 when Microsoft announced its plans to acquire games publisher Activision Blizzard.
Phil Spencer, the Head of Microsoft Gaming and Xbox took to his Twitter account to confirm the news, stating, “We are pleased to announce that Microsoft and @PlayStation have signed a binding agreement to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation following the acquisition of Activision Blizzard. We look forward to a future where players globally have more choice to play their favorite games.”
This agreement aims to address regulators’ concerns about Microsoft’s impact on the cloud gaming market following its acquisition of Activision Blizzard and making Call of Duty “exclusive” to Xbox to its own consoles. They also feared that the Redmond giant could oust rivals like Sony Group from the competition.
Brad Smith, Microsoft’s Vice Chair and President, said, “From Day One of this acquisition, we’ve been committed to addressing the concerns of regulators, platform and game developers, and consumers. Even after we cross the finish line for this deal’s approval, we will remain focused on ensuring that Call of Duty remains available on more platforms and for more consumers than ever before.”
From Day One of this acquisition, we’ve been committed to addressing the concerns of regulators, platform and game developers, and consumers. Even after we cross the finish line for this deal’s approval, we will remain focused on ensuring that Call of Duty remains available on… https://t.co/hMWjC58wRi
— Brad Smith (@BradSmi) July 16, 2023
According to a report by The Verge, Kari Perez, Head of Global Communications at Xbox, has confirmed to the publication that the commitment of a 10-year deal is only for Call of Duty. This deal is similar to the 10-year agreement between Microsoft and Nintendo.
For the unversed, in December 2022, Sony had resisted signing a Call of Duty deal with Microsoft, fearing that the Redmond giant would make Call of Duty exclusive to Xbox or even sabotage the PlayStation versions of the game where bugs and errors emerge only on the game’s final level or after later updates.
Further, in January 2022, Microsoft’s original deal offer to Sony included keeping “all existing Activision console titles on Sony, including future versions in the Call of Duty franchise or any other current Activision franchise on Sony through December 31, 2027.”
There are speculations that the two companies might look to close their transaction by Tuesday, July 18; however, the terms of the agreement have been clearly altered since the initial offer, with an extension to 10 years that’s exclusive to just Call of Duty.
Microsoft has submitted a “detailed and complex” proposal to the regulator with changes in circumstances, which means that the merger deadline between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard could be extended as well.
Currently, the deal is being examined by regulators in the UK, with the investigation deadline extended until August 29th.
