Microsoft has responded to Sony’s allegations and issued a dry statement.
As we previously reported, Sony has told GamesIndustry.biz that the acquisition of Activision Blizzard, and with it Call of Duty, in the hands of Microsoft “significant negative impact” would have. In addition, it is welcomed that England has initiated further investigations.
Sony is increasingly worried that Call of Duty alone could have such a negative impact on the market leadership of the PlayStation that Microsoft’s takeover of Activision Blizzard is viewed with great trepidation.
Now Microsoft has spoken out about Sony’s allegations. In a statement to Eurogamer, a Microsoft spokesman commented on Sony’s statement:
“It makes no business sense for Microsoft to remove Call of Duty from PlayStation given its market-leading console position.”
Despite all the “exclusive” worries, Sony has no problem threading more exclusive deals for Call of Duty Modern Warfare II and Call of Duty: Warzone 2 to keep content off the Xbox platform. Only PlayStation players can play the current beta “earlier” and only PlayStation players will receive the “Oni Operator Bundle”. The Oni Bundle for Xbox may only be released from October 27, 2023.
What do you think about it? Are Sony’s worries justified or is this just an unnecessary drama to somehow cast the Microsoft deal in a negative light? What do you think of this exclusive discussion? Sony’s double standards?
