Sony admitted in a statement to the UK Markets and Competition Authority that in terms of market share, Microsoft with Game Pass is well ahead of PS Plus. Moreover, the Japanese claim that their games cannot match Call of Duty.
The saga of Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard has been going on for over a year, and just when it seems to be coming to an end, another problem arises. Most of the opposition to the deal comes from Sony, which, clinging to every possible drop, is trying to prevent the deal from being finalized.
Game Pass is the leader
This time, in a letter to the UK Markets and Competition Authority (which, like many other bodies around the world, is investigating the takeover) the Japanese admit that in terms of market share, Game Pass is “well ahead of PS Plus”..
Microsoft’s sneaky plan?
We also learn from the report that Microsoft has, according to Sony, too many reasons for, among other things, raising the price of Obligation a PlayStation in case your Activision Blizzard purchase ends.
“According to SIE (Sony Interactive Entertainment) in addition to a full market access shutdown, Microsoft would also have an incentive to engage in one or more of the following partial shutdown strategies:
- increase the price of Call of Duty PlayStation;
- lower quality and performance of Call of Duty on PlayStation compared to Xbox;
- limiting, downgrading or not prioritizing investment in the PlayStation multiplayer experience;
- provide Call of Duty as part of subscription services with multiple games only on Game Pass; or make Call of Duty available on PlayStation Plus at a price that is not commercially viable, making it a de facto exclusive title,” Sony’s statement read (via tom warren).
Sony’s “modest”
Besides, Sony representatives said in their report that they couldn’t live without it. Obligationbecause their games cannot be compared to the Activision Blizzard brand.
“SIE’s experience in developing Battle Royale games is limited and their current shooter is much less influential than Call Of Duty. Destiny, Sony’s top active first-person shooter brand, had no than (redacted percentage) hours played and (redacted percentage) spent per game compared to Call of Duty in 2021,” Sony wrote (via Eurogamer).
Microsoft does not mince its words
Microsoft representatives did not turn a deaf ear to these statements, emphasizing that “Sony’s position must be seen for what it is, what it is: a selfish attempt to protect its dominant position on the market”.and not one that’s based on genuine concerns about continued access to CoD, which they were able to get months ago.”
There’s no one smarter than… Call of Duty
In response Sony reiterated the importance of Obligation for playstationstating that “there are few brands as enduring and significant in revenue and playtime for PlayStation” as the series, and that creating a rival would have “little chance of success”..
One cannot help but hope for an imminent end to the battle between Sony and Microsoft, because for the moment the two companies, instead of presenting strategies for the development and improvement of the gaming industry, do not are more concerned than pointing out the other’s weaknesses.