After Sony raised concerns about Activision Blizzard’s purchase by microsoftthose from Redmond went to the Brazilian regulator to defend your movement forcefully (via ResetEra). The parent company of Xbox, in fact, took advantage of his intervention to criticize Sony’s positioning. They did not hesitate to throw several darts at them for each of the comments they made.
First, from Microsoft they clarify that are not surprised by Sony’s statements. “It was the only third-party company that conveyed a public opinion materially different from that of Microsoft and the third party in relation to the competitive analysis of the transaction”, they said. Certainly, companies such as Ubisoft, Bandai Namco, Riot Games and Warner Bros. do not consider that the purchase of Activision threatens competitiveness in the sector.
Sony had mentioned that, if Call of Duty became available through Xbox Game Pass, the rest of the services would be at a disadvantage because there is no franchise at the same level. At such a thought, Microsoft replied that Sony simply does not want other proposals to threaten its current leadership in the digital market.:
“Sony’s public outcry over game subscriptions and the company’s response are clear: it doesn’t want hot subscription services to threaten its dominance of the console game digital distribution market. In other words, Sony criticizes the introduction of new monetization models capable of challenging their business model.”
Unjustified complaints?
Those from Japan had also commented that Call of Duty is so big and important that it could be considered as a “game category by itself”. As they say, it would be quite beneficial for the buyer to have full control of said franchise. “Call of Duty it is so popular that it influences users’ choice of console. In fact, its network of loyal users is so ingrained that even if a competitor had the budget to develop a similar product, they wouldn’t be able to create a rival,” they said.
Microsoft defends itself against this argument by pointing out that the PlayStation brand also has a strong loyal user base. “However, this does not lead to the conclusion that PlayStation, or any branded product with loyal consumers, is a separate market from all other consoles. The extreme conclusion that Call of Duty is a ‘game category in itself’ is simply unjustifiable under any quantitative or qualitative analysis “”, they added.
Also, Microsoft hinted that Sony’s complaints don’t make much sense because, after announcing their intention to buy Activision Blizzard, they promised that the next installments of Call Of Duty will continue to come to PlayStation consoles. They even mention that it would not make sense, from a business point of view, to move it away from the Sony platform. They reiterate that offering it through a service like Xbox Game Pass would be just one more alternative for players to access the game.
“Sony’s statement ignores the ‘dynamic nature’ of subscription services and the fact that Sony also has its own. There are many other game distribution channels and subscription services, many of which include content that is not available on Xbox.”
Microsoft does not forget the exclusive agreements with Sony
Microsoft placed special emphasis on Sony also relies on exclusive content strategies to strengthen the value of your catalog. Not only with games developed by their own internal studios, but also by closing exclusivity agreements with other companies in the industry.
Finally, the US entity ensures that Sony has been avoiding the growth of Xbox Game Pass because, in their clauses with some developers, they state that their games cannot land on the Microsoft service.
Undoubtedly, it is a very strong position that Sony will hardly be able to respond with the same forcefulness. At the moment, yes, this crossing of statements has only been raised in the Brazilian regulatory body. It is very likely that in other countries we will see this tension replicated before they give the green light to the purchase.