After a battle for the future of Call of Duty, Microsoft and Sony have reached a 'binding' agreement to keep the much-loved game available on PlayStation.
Questions about what would become of Call of Duty began amid Microsoft’s decision to acquire Activision Blizzard; the video game company responsible for bringing CoD to the world.
The United States' Federal Trade Commission (FTC) argued the acquisition would give Microsoft reason to exclude rivals like Sony by making Activision's games 'exclusive' to its own consoles, though a judge rejected a request from US regulators to block the deal.
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Last month, Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley said: “The FTC has not shown it is likely to succeed on its assertion the combined firm will probably pull Call of Duty from Sony PlayStation, or that its ownership of Activision content will substantially lessen competition in the video game library subscription and cloud gaming markets.”
Now, Microsoft has agreed to a 10-year contract which assures that CoD will remain available on Sony's PlayStation consoles once the acquisition is complete.
Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Gaming, announced news of the deal on Twitter yesterday (16 July), writing: "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."
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Microsoft confirmed to the BBC that the deal will last 10 years, ensuring Sony fans that their favorite Activision games won't be going anywhere for at least a decade.
Microsoft’s president, Brad Smith, also shared the news, tweeting: “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.”
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The acquisition still isn't certain to close, though the two companies are aiming to complete the deal as soon as tomorrow. Activision and Microsoft could also choose to extend the deadline.
The deal has already been approved by the European Union, but a bid to block the merger in the UK is currently under appeal.
After initially blocking the takeover, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has said it will spend six weeks giving the deal 'full and proper consideration'.
If completed, the proposed $69 billion (£52.7bn) acquisition would be the biggest of its kind in gaming industry history.
Topics: Gaming, Technology, Microsoft, Call of Duty, Sony
Emily Brown