Call Of Duty Might Stay Off Game Pass For Years After Microsoft Acquisition

The barrage of updates regarding Microsoft’s attempted acquisition ofActivision Blizzardcontinues, now withVGCdiscovering a footnote inMicrosoft’s response to the CMA(UK market regulators) that implies thatCall of Dutymight not even be able to get onGame Pass"for a number of years," following the acquisition.RELATED:Xbox’s Streaming Console Potentially Spotted In Phil Spencer TweThe footnote reportedly references an oldTweetfromXboxpresident Phil Spencer back from when the deal was first announced, in which he confirmed Xbox’s desire to “honor all existing agreements upon acquisition of Activision Blizzard” and “keep Call of Duty onPlayStation.” The footnote confirmed that part of this agreement included restrictions on Activision’s ability to place Call of Duty on Game Pass for “a number of years.” This would align with priorclaims by Microsoft that PlayStation pays for ‘blocking rights’so developers keep their games off Game Pass.

Game Pass is Xbox’s popular gaming subscription service, which gives access to over 100 downloadable titles for a set monthly fee. Were the acquisition to get approved by regulators, the expectation is for Activision’s biggest franchise, Call of Duty, to start putting its titles on Game Pass. Xbox’s goal with that is to draw Call of Duty fans into the Xbox ecosystem, who’d prefer to pay for a Game Pass subscription instead of a $70 premium every year.

Although Call of Duty’s eventual addition to Game Passhas been confirmedby Spencer himself, it could be that it may take a while for this to happen. It’s currently unclear whether Microsoft is legally bound by these agreements Activision had with PlayStation, given the language of Spencer’s tweet wherein he confirms Xbox’s “intent to honor [them].” If so, there could be years before consumers feel any tangible effect from the acquisition.

Even if Microsoftisn’tlegally bound by the agreements, it may still want to abide by them due to regulator pressure. The CMA recently approved the second phase of its investigation into the acquisition to make sure it isn’t detrimental to fair market competition. Microsoft argued that the CMA was relying on “self-serving statements by Sony,” and that Sony “exaggerates the importance of Call of Duty.” The CMA wasunswayed, however, stating that an exclusive Call of Duty “would impact Sony’s ability to compete with Microsoft.”

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