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pg 7: Microsoft has finalized its purchase of Activision; trailer: first post on page 8
Posted on 3/24/23 at 8:07 am
Posted on 3/24/23 at 8:07 am
It's always been pretty clear that this deal would go through. The US FTC is the only one still considering console competition related to the sale, and they look more like clowns every single day (not just because of this deal). PlayStation's childish whining has amounted to absolutely nothing except to alienate themselves from other publishers.
Direct Link to UK CMA Website
They're still looking at the cloud gaming aspects, but I think the deals MS has made with cloud streaming services lately are going to be more than enough to allay those fears.
ETA: I wonder if Microsoft will still sign a deal with Sony for CoD now that they've signed so many deals with so many other companies.
Direct Link to UK CMA Website
quote:
The CMA has received a significant amount of new evidence in response to its original provisional findings. Having considered this new evidence carefully, together with the wide range of information gathered before those provisional findings were issued, the CMA inquiry group has updated its provisional findings and reached the provisional conclusion that, overall, the transaction will not result in a substantial lessening of competition in relation to console gaming in the UK.
The most significant new evidence provided to the CMA relates to Microsoft’s financial incentives to make Activision’s games, including Call of Duty (CoD), exclusive to its own consoles. While the CMA’s original analysis indicated that this strategy would be profitable under most scenarios, new data (which provides better insight into the actual purchasing behaviour of CoD gamers) indicates that this strategy would be significantly loss-making under any plausible scenario. On this basis, the updated analysis now shows that it would not be commercially beneficial to Microsoft to make CoD exclusive to Xbox following the deal, but that Microsoft will instead still have the incentive to continue to make the game available on PlayStation.
They're still looking at the cloud gaming aspects, but I think the deals MS has made with cloud streaming services lately are going to be more than enough to allay those fears.
quote:
The CMA’s addendum to its provisional findings today relates only to competition in the supply of consoles and not to competition in the supply of cloud gaming services, where the CMA is continuing to carefully consider the responses provided in relation to the original provisional findings. The CMA’s merger investigation continues, and it remains due to issue its final report by 26 April 2023.
ETA: I wonder if Microsoft will still sign a deal with Sony for CoD now that they've signed so many deals with so many other companies.
This post was edited on 10/13/23 at 8:07 pm
9
Posted on 3/24/23 at 9:19 am to imjustafatkid
quote:
the updated analysis now shows that it would not be commercially beneficial to Microsoft to make CoD exclusive to Xbox following the deal
Microsoft's end game here is to make CoD an Xbox exclusive, available on game pass, on day one.
Posted on 3/24/23 at 9:58 am to Chimlim
quote:
Microsoft's end game here is to make CoD an Xbox exclusive, available on game pass, on day one.
There seems to be no indication of this. For sure it will be on Game Pass on day one just like all other first party Xbox games, but Microsoft has already made 10 year deals with Nintendo and even streaming services to bring CoD there. Sony refused to come to the bargaining table.
In other news, a Democrat Senator from Washington was questioning Sony's relationship to the Japanese government in a hearing yesterday. Sony has really made a HUGE error with the way they've handled this, because there was never any legitimate reason for them to oppose this acquisition. I honestly don't know why they would keep Jim Ryan if this results in more regulatory scrutiny for them in the USA. His childish antics have made them look like fools. Walking away from the bargaining table while everyone else signed 10-year deals with MS may turn out to be a historic blunder, especially if it resulted in regulators taking a closer look at Sony's third party exclusivity practices.
Japanese regulators allow Sony to conduct anti-competitive actions in Japan that have harmed Microsoft, and Sony absolutely does not want the USA to start acting the same way.
This is the sort of thing I'd expect Republicans to advocate for. If a Democrat is already questioning it, that is a bad sign for Sony. Not only because the FTC is run by Democrats right now, but if Democrats are on board then it would not be difficult to get bi-partisan support to protect a US company from these sort of protectionist policies in other countries.
ETA: I hope you all bought Activision stock a year ago, like I did. There's still time. Sale price is $95 a share and it's currently at $83.
This post was edited on 3/24/23 at 10:18 am
Posted on 3/27/23 at 7:33 pm to imjustafatkid
More bad news for Sony. Seems they should have stayed completely out of this MS Activision merger and realized what a good thing they've had going for them.
LINK
Already bipartisan from the jump. This letter from some Republicans immediately after a Democrat was discussing this publicly last week.
If Sony ends up losing its monopolization in Japan over this, it's going to be hilarious.
LINK
quote:
Ten members of the House also sent two letters on Thursday to Tai and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo urging action.
quote:
What they’re saying: “Today, we write to bring to your attention the imbalanced Japanese video game market, which we are concerned may be a result of a discriminatory trade practice that could violate the spirit of the U.S.-Japan Digital Trade Agreement,” states one of the letters, signed by four Republicans from the House, including Carol Miller (R-W.Va.) and Mike Carey (R-Ohio).
Already bipartisan from the jump. This letter from some Republicans immediately after a Democrat was discussing this publicly last week.
quote:
Between the lines: Article 8 of the 2019 U.S.-Japan Digital Trade Agreement calls for the countries to enable “non-discriminatory treatment of digital products” which would include games. It’s less clear if it would also pertain to game consoles.
If Sony ends up losing its monopolization in Japan over this, it's going to be hilarious.
quote:
“Sony’s anti-competitive tactics deserve discussion, and we welcome further investigation to ensure a level playing field in the video game industry,” Microsoft spokesperson David Cuddy told Axios.
Posted on 3/28/23 at 6:54 am to imjustafatkid
Posted on 3/28/23 at 9:10 am to imjustafatkid
Well Sony is a shite company worshiped by many here.
They have held back gaming innovation.
They have held back gaming innovation.
Posted on 3/28/23 at 12:06 pm to DarthRebel
Yep. This is going to be another Sony Betamax moment - stifle innovation, dig in and not make changes, crash and burn.
Posted on 3/28/23 at 12:32 pm to DarthRebel
quote:
Well Sony is a shite company worshiped by many here.
They have held back gaming innovation.
let's not act like microsoft is some kind of savior to the gaming industry. they have similar fanboys that do nothing, but bitch about the lack of exclusive IPs. all the while jerk their e-peens because game pass gives them access to mid-level games with the occasional gem.
i'm willing to bet that the xbox players here don't play 10% of the game pass library. they'll gladly enjoy paying that $15/month to play Madden, BF, and maybe MLB The Show for that year and that's probably it.
there's a reason people gravitate to playstation and it isn't because the lack of innovation.
Posted on 3/28/23 at 3:32 pm to finchmeister08
quote:
microsoft is some kind of savior to the gaming industry
Game Pass is revolutionizing the gaming industry. This is the real reason why Sony has been opposing this purchase. They know their business model doesn't work against Microsoft's Game Pass.
Posted on 3/28/23 at 4:41 pm to imjustafatkid
quote:
Game Pass is revolutionizing the gaming industry.
maybe.... maybe not.
maybe the math is too big for my small brain, but i don't see how developers benefit from a small percentage of a subscription fee vs a full price disc/digital purchase. especially how fast a AAA game can come and go in terms of its player base.
and i don't believe that Game Pass will remain at $15 a month if Microsoft keeps buying all of these studios. we see this with all of the "cord-cutting" options for cable. if/when the price increases, people are going to wonder if it's worth buying the game at $70 a pop or $15/25/35 per month.
This post was edited on 3/28/23 at 4:43 pm
Posted on 3/28/23 at 6:05 pm to finchmeister08
quote:
maybe the math is too big for my small brain, but i don't see how developers benefit from a small percentage of a subscription fee vs a full price disc/digital purchase. especially how fast a AAA game can come and go in terms of its player base.
From what I know working with MSFT for the past 20 years, they have a complex formula for who gets paid what.
GP is up to 25 million subscribers now, but we can assume everyone is not paying retail. Just going with $5/month, they would still be bringing in $125 million a month. Others say it is around $10/month, so $1 billion a QTR.
Infrastructure cost are pretty low for them, as a lot of that is already sunken capitalized costs from their cloud initiatives.
Posted on 3/28/23 at 9:17 pm to finchmeister08
quote:
maybe the math is too big for my small brain, but i don't see how developers benefit from a small percentage of a subscription fee vs a full price disc/digital purchase. especially how fast a AAA game can come and go in terms of its player base.
No idea, but I've seen very few interviews with developers who aren't happy with the arrangement.
quote:
and i don't believe that Game Pass will remain at $15 a month
Don't know. They've said they don't have any intent to increase the monthly fee.
I'm sure it'll happen eventually, but it won't be soon. So far it's been totally worth it at my house.
This post was edited on 3/28/23 at 9:18 pm
Posted on 4/7/23 at 9:42 am to imjustafatkid
Jim Ryan threw all Sony publishers and developers under the bus yesterday.
'Our Business Would Never Recover' If Microsoft Degraded Call of Duty on PlayStation
Really not sure how he still has a job after this. He is really putting PlayStation in a bad spot.
Imagine thinking the PlayStation's success is tied only to Call of Duty. Are the PlayStation exclusives really performing that poorly?
'Our Business Would Never Recover' If Microsoft Degraded Call of Duty on PlayStation
Really not sure how he still has a job after this. He is really putting PlayStation in a bad spot.
quote:
Sony Interactive Entertainment President and CEO Jim Ryan in the company's response to the UK regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), Addendum stated PlayStation "would never recover" if Microsoft were to release a degraded version of Call of Duty on PlayStation if its acquisition of Activision Blizzard were to be approved.
Ryan said a degraded version of Call of Duty on PlayStation would "seriously damage our reputation. Our gamers would desert our platform in droves and network effects would exacerbate the problem. Our business would never recover."
Sony says the Addendum from the CMA ignored this testimony from Ryan and assumed that even a degraded version of the series on PlayStation would not cause gamers to switch from PlayStation to Xbox.
Imagine thinking the PlayStation's success is tied only to Call of Duty. Are the PlayStation exclusives really performing that poorly?
This post was edited on 4/7/23 at 10:02 am
Posted on 4/7/23 at 10:35 am to imjustafatkid
quote:
Ryan said a degraded version of Call of Duty on PlayStation would "seriously damage our reputation. Our gamers would desert our platform in droves and network effects would exacerbate the problem. Our business would never recover."
Oof.
Posted on 4/7/23 at 10:49 am to imjustafatkid
I just don't think Sony will be able to compete with Microsoft in the long run.
Call of Duty was the best selling game on Playstation last year. If Microsoft can get it on game pass, available on day one, it will be a huge hit to Sony. He's not wrong that if those gamers switched to Xbox, Sony would be done for.
Call of Duty was the best selling game on Playstation last year. If Microsoft can get it on game pass, available on day one, it will be a huge hit to Sony. He's not wrong that if those gamers switched to Xbox, Sony would be done for.
Posted on 4/7/23 at 11:57 am to Chimlim
quote:
He's not wrong that if those gamers switched to Xbox, Sony would be done for.
If true, then I guess it's no wonder they've been degrading their own reputation over this deal.
Maybe they should have adapted when Game Pass came out instead of pretending it was an impossible business model gamers weren't ready for.
Reminds me of when Nintendo rejected the CD drive and another game system popped up...can't quite remember the name of it...
Posted on 4/7/23 at 2:30 pm to imjustafatkid
quote:
Maybe they should have adapted when Game Pass came out instead of pretending it was an impossible business model gamers weren't ready for.
Realistically, I am pretty sure Gamepass is losing money for Microsoft. Microsoft can afford it because they have more money than some nations.
I do not think Sony can afford to compete on the same level with Gamepass, certainly not including their major releases like God of War, Horizon, Uncharted, The Last of Us, etc.
Posted on 4/7/23 at 6:12 pm to BulldogXero
quote:
Realistically, I am pretty sure Gamepass is losing money for Microsoft. Microsoft can afford it because they have more money than some nations.
Certainly possible, but I find it hard to believe they'd be riding it as long as they already have if it's consistently losing money.
Posted on 4/7/23 at 7:48 pm to imjustafatkid
quote:
Certainly possible, but I find it hard to believe they'd be riding it as long as they already have if it's consistently losing money.
They're playing the long game and pretty soon Game Pass will be on Nintendo along with a decent streaming platform as they build out more of their cloud presence.
Posted on 4/14/23 at 2:00 pm to bad93ex
Senator Kevin Cramer, Republican out of North Dakota, sent Sony a letter about their anti-competitive practices yesterday. Sony really should have left things alone here. They've awakened a sleeping giant in the US Congress that was not paying attention to them before, and probably knew nothing about their video game practices until Sony got involved in Microsoft's purchase of Activision.
LINK
Link to the full letter.
LINK
quote:
Sen. Cramer Raises Concerns about Anti-Competitive Behavior in Gaming Industry
quote:
I write to express concern about Sony’s efforts to protect its gaming console business from competition. For more than 20 years, Sony has utterly dominated the gaming console market, as that market has been defined by the Federal Trade Commission. I am concerned Sony’s dominance of that market, and its efforts to perpetuate its current position imperils an important economic development opportunity for North Dakota
Link to the full letter.
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