Microsoft faced off in court on Thursday with the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which blocked the company from buying Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion. Court documents published during the trial also revealed the introduction date of Microsoft’s next-generation game consoles.
Microsoft has given a date for the new Xbox and PlayStation 6
The legal battle between Microsoft and the FTC began last December when Microsoft announced that it did not approve of its massive $68.7 billion acquisition of the company behind Call of Duty, Diablo and Candy Crush. Last week, a federal court in California enforced a temporary injunction requested by the FTC, blocking the agreement between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard for now.
FTC: Microsoft's agreements with Nvidia, Nintendo, etc are "filled with loopholes and speculative commitments"
Says Nvidia deal clause shows MS can "unilaterally" opt to renegotiate
Says Microsoft has resisted testimony/discovery on the deals. Wants them excluded from hearings pic.twitter.com/dSCFHnXCWY
— Stephen Totilo (@stephentotilo) June 22, 2023
The US Federal Trade Commission opposes the acquisition, saying the deal, which will be the largest in gaming industry history, could “significantly reduce competition” in the industry. Claims that the FTC cannot complete the purchase while the transaction remains under review for compliance with US ‘antitrust’ law.
Defending itself in this regard and wanting to incorporate Activision Blizzard in a short time, Microsoft made a date for the next generation Xbox and PlayStation 6 with its statement. Underlining that the commitment to publish Call of Duty games on PlayStation platforms is 10 years, the company stated that this period does not pose a danger for the new generation game consoles that will be introduced in 2028.
In an FTC v MS/ABK deposition, PlayStation chief Jim Ryan said that, if deal closes, Sony couldn't tell Activision about its next console
Is then asked about Sony working with Mojang (Minecraft) after MS bought them. Discussion is redacted but Ryan says it supports this concern pic.twitter.com/M86CBm3CcY
— Stephen Totilo (@stephentotilo) June 21, 2023
Stating that the contract for the release of Call of Duty games will still be valid when the PlayStation 6 is released, the company stated that they will not violate the ‘antitrust’ law in any way. With this statement, a date was also given for the new generation Xbox and PlayStation 6.
With this statement, it seems that there is still a 5-year process ahead for the Xbox Series X / S and PlayStation 5, which were introduced 3 years ago. However, considering the current state of the dollar rate, you’d better start saving money for next-generation game consoles now.
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