Playstation fears players will move to Xbox if Microsoft owns Call of Duty

Microsoft’s plan to acquire Activision Blizzard is currently being reviewed by regulators around the world, and in Brazil, Sony’s official response to that government’s questions has been published. According to these documents, Sony believes that once Microsoft acquires the Call of Duty franchise as part of the acquisition, it will It will have the ability to influence choices Players console.

“According to a 2019 study, the importance of Call of Duty to entertainment in general is indescribable,” the company said. “It was the only video game IP brand to make it into the top 10 of all entertainment brands among fans, joining strong companies like Star Wars, Game of Thrones, Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings. Call of Duty is very popular Affects users’ choice of consoleand its loyal user community is well established enough even if a competitor has the budget to develop a similar product, Not be able to compete with him. “

Sony added that the unparalleled level of investment Activision is committed to in each Call of Duty game, along with a dedicated workforce spread across multiple dedicated studios, is one of the reasons the franchise is the best-selling game. This level of success, in turn, has made Call of Duty an incredibly profitable franchise and a world-renowned brand with a dedicated fan base associated with it.

In February, Microsoft reiterated its intention to continue developing Activision franchises for competing console platforms and said it would continue to support Call of Duty on PlayStation “beyond the current agreement” and in the future. Microsoft has confirmed this before You will honor any existing publishing agreementsspecifically Modern Warfare 2 from 2022, Call of Duty: Warzone 2 from 2023, and a new major release of Call of Duty in late 2023.

Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard was announced in January 2022 and expected to be completed by June 2023, with US Federal Trade Commission approval likely to arrive later this month. In addition to that US regulator, the acquisition still needs approval from other government watchdog groups such as the UK Competition and Markets Authority.

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