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250°

The CMA investigation into the Microsoft and Activision Blizzard merger

How the CMA is investigating the merger, what it means for gamers and the industry, and how you can share your views.

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Community702d ago
SullysCigar702d ago

It is interesting. If the CMA could be bought off, they probably would have been by now, so it's good to see them taking their role seriously.

Then again, maybe they're already in Microsoft's pocket and this is all a show to appear above board. Who knows.

I think they need to set an example here and put their foot down. Microsoft have a tendency to go for the shortcut to the top, which is precisely what competition law is supposed to govern.

We've all seen Microsoft's statements. They're hardly being honest with the very people they're trying to sway. That can't sit well.

The CMA will be well aware that one risk of letting this through would be the president it sets. It could open the floodgates - as most of us already recognise - and that is NOT safeguarding the industry, or more importantly the consumers, which is kind of their raison d'être.

VenomUK702d ago

Unlike the US regulator the FTC which appears to have waved through all Microsoft's previous mega-deals (GitHub $7.5 billion in 2018, LinkedIn for $26 million 2016, Nuance $26 billion 2021). It appears that CMA doesn't blindly allow Big Tech to do whatever it wants. Three days ago it ordered Meta-Facebook to sell Giphy because it would limit the choice of UK social media users and limit advertising.

https://www.gov.uk/governme...

SullysCigar702d ago

^ Spot on, @VenomUK, it certainly seems big tech giants are not properly governed in the US and it makes you wonder what goes on..

Notice the usual disagrees with zero riposte? Sometimes you need to acknowledge the elephant in the room, whether it's popular or not.

When it's your job to protect the consumer, you need to hear from them. I've seen people in other threads suggest it's because they can't do their job themselves, when in fact it's a key part of their process.

If they want our feedback, they should get it. They won't likely trawl the N4G comments section, so if we're concerned it's time to click the link and make our voices heard.

XiNatsuDragnel702d ago

@venomuk
Fr that is what imo a functioning company is like.

anubusgold702d ago (Edited 702d ago )

The US is on the take really lol? The CMA is letting sony argue you cant let them buy people they will challenge us for first place we are the only ones allowed to be in first place help us lol. This is a cowardly argument and sony just doesnt want to compete and wants to charge people 70 dollars for games. The fact that the CMA is letting sony argue this is a total joke; Its like Microsoft crying to the EU to protect them from Apple in the OS market lol.

Orchard702d ago

"It appears that CMA doesn't blindly allow Big Tech to do whatever it wants."

Their past record with Microsoft suggests otherwise though. Take Nuance for example, their most recent acquisition - the CMA opened the same investigation and later concluded it was fine - and the acquisition closed.

InUrFoxHole702d ago

Well this consumer welcomes the deal..

dcbronco702d ago

Man you're laying the whole victim thing on thick. Sony started this process but the board is in Microsoft's pocket?🤔 And what floodgates are being opened? Microsoft has a history of working with others. They've tried to do cross-platform. Minecraft is everywhere despite being an opportunity to get children hooked on the Microsoft brand. The long history of exclusivity, whether paid or not, will be proof of just how much harm can be done by one console manufacturer or another. In fact, since Sony fans say Sony doesn't pay for exclusives despite getting far more third party exclusivity it would be proof of favoritism for Sony. That diminishes any potential hard to Sony. If I were Microsoft I'd also direct the CMA to sites like N4G where they can read comments and see the downvotes from 30 years that say Sony has a clear advantage. Plus the idea of them bringing up cloud gaming on one hand hurts Microsoft but on the other helps because as the industry transitions to a system where everyone is their own publisher content matters. So acquisitions are the future of gaming. Sony had the misfortune of the Cell issue that set them back as a company and is the cause of them not being in a better position. But it's Sony's responsibility to fix that issue. The government can't save them. And it can't hold Microsoft back for having the vision and means to remain relevant. Sony is embarrassing themselves with running to the government. It makes them look weak and you have believe they've just caught on to the future issues they're facing. This isn't going to go their way. It makes me curious what that means for the next generation.

VenomUK701d ago

@SullysCigar - Thanks. Yes, it is unlikely that the CMA will be reading N4G comments for opinions... but you never know! The key is for concerned members of the public, whether for against the deal, is to be able to crystallise the pertinent issue about the buyout's affect that goes beyond the 'I prefer this company, I dislike this company' expressions and be able to presents coherent arguments.

VariantAEC700d ago

@VenomUK
MS has people in Government in the U.S. I hope MS holds no seats in Parliament as they do in Congress.

+ Show (6) more repliesLast reply 700d ago
blackblades702d ago

Meh, shows MS BS and if this goes through there will be more that they will aquire after the success of 2 big publishers. Going by MS previous many bad moves and history, doing so might backfire on them or F it all up.

badz149702d ago

EA will be next. especially now that their FIFA license has expired

anubusgold702d ago

Tell sony to stop attacking game pass and microsoft may stop buying people to supply content for their platform. The more deals sony sign to keep games off xbox the more developers microsoft will buy to make sure their gamers have content on their system. Sonys tactics to keep games off xbox has come back to bite them in the ass. Oh we cant have the game sony we will just buy the company that is what is happening now.

RCslayer701d ago

Haha you obviously don't understand how business works. They aren't just buying devs, this process takes years, the MS and Activision deal started back before covid even hit the world. It isn't like oh sony is pissing in our cornflakes lets go buy so and so lol

anubusgold700d ago

@RCslayer works oh i know who business works and a government shouldn't protect sonys number one spot the CMA is full of crap.

701d ago
badz149702d ago

wait...since when is this a merger? it's an acquisition, right?

700d ago
onisama702d ago

love seeing sony trying to stop the deal jim rayan is always making statements of things PS was doing to secure his top position which is funny ....like we fair that MS make bonus contents for COD in xbox....bro you have been doing that the last 10 years lol and even doing a contract to stop it from coming to gamepass and many other games ...sony is full of hypocracy

MrDead702d ago

It's like you're actively trying not to understand what's happening.

702d ago
702d ago
MrDead702d ago

Let's have a look at MS buy up and banning of publishers on competing systems.
Are MS spending $80 billion on making new games. No
Are MS spending $80 billion on bringing games to Xbox that weren't coming to Xbox. No
Ms are spending $80 billion on removing games from competition, that's it. Two publishers with over 30 years of multiplatform IP's gone, no single company has ever been so anti-gamer as MS

shinoff2183702d ago

This is the best way I have seen this put. Good job mr dead.

Ill also add that most of those games they are buying to take away from the competition sold better on the competitions console.

702d ago
Petebloodyonion702d ago

Please mentioned the several existing IP that MS removed from PlayStation
Go ahead ill be waiting...

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130°

Capcom Is Updating Several GFWL Games To Bring Them Back On Steam

Capcom is updating Games For Windows Live (GFWL) titles on Steam to once again make them available for purchase on the digital storefront.

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200°

Take-Two bosses get $25m performance-based bonus, despite sacking 550 people

Zelnick and Slatoff have received a $25m bonus for their management fund after sacking 550 people from Take Two Interactive.

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Community1d 14h ago
thorstein1d 14h ago (Edited 1d 14h ago )

Can't wait to hear how the corporate bootlickers defend this.

seanpitt231d 10h ago

This is the world we live in and people seem to think it's acceptable

Cacabunga1d 8h ago

550 probably consultants.
GTA6 is in tweak phase, no need for massive number of people for that.

PRIMORDUS1d 8h ago

Best way to get rid of people like this is to make them disappear, permanently.

purple10114h ago

Bury them deep, plant an endangered species of tree ontop- body can never be recovered 🧐

Don’t ask how I know this 😂

JackBNimble15h ago

So don't support take 2 by buying games... pretty easy to vote with your wallet.

Profchaos1d 13h ago

They also just held a leadership vote I don't think there was any changes

Software_Lover1d 12h ago

I really don't even think CEO's should get bonuses. If I were a CEO and I made millions, I would like to think I wouldn't. Or if I had to legally, I would maybe find a way to disperse among the lower tier employees. Take my bonus and turn it into stocks to disperse out to those employees evenly.

DarXyde1d ago

That would be the way to do it. Imagine thinking a CEOs "leadership" is worth that much money while the talent makes the product.

Insanity.

FinalFantasyFanatic21h ago

I remember when I started working, my department manager used to gift us stuff each year, one year I got a bottle of Scotch, another it was a small basket of treats... But that was also a lot less money than what we're talking about here.

It would be ideal if the CEO could gift a bonus to everyone under them.

thorstein15h ago

Monetary company bonuses (often referred to as Christmas bonuses) were astoundingly common.

The entire premise of Christmas Vacation was set around Clark's bonus.

MrDead1d 12h ago

CEO's work for shareholders and are shareholders they also rely on share price to receive their multimillion dollar paydays and they will happily fire thousands to protect shares. CEO's are there to extract the most value out of a company and give it to the wealthy few.

redknight801d 11h ago

That is so god damn fucked up!! Unfortunately...I know damn well I will be still buying their games but shit like this should seriously have some sort of repercussion of some sort. 550 people get their lives totally up-ended and the leadership get a bonus on top of an already high salary. 25M could set those 550 people up with an annual salary each of $45,000. Depending on where you live, that is a very livable salary even...

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350°

Microsoft Reportedly Spends $1 Billion Annually To Get Third-Party Games On Game Pass

Uncover the spending behind Xbox's Game Pass subscription. Discover how Microsoft invests a billion dollars annually in securing third-party games for the service.

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Obscure_Observer2d ago

Good.

Now that you´re releasing games and making big money from every gaming platform, you should double that amount and give us even more day one third party games!

Jin_Sakai2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

You’re delusional beyond belief. Businesses wise it doesn’t make sense and sooner or later they’ll be raising prices again to cover that billion they’re blowing every year.

outsider16242d ago

Lucky for xbox that papa microsoft is rich.

purple1012d ago (Edited 2d ago )

As someone else said earlier today, they are past the growth stage, it’s been stagnent for last 3 years, they are now in the money making stage, prepare to be goosed for as many dollars as possible for the least amount of content. It may not be bad now, (actually it is) but it will be soon (even worse) this year you got hellblade and starfirld and a load of other games that could be bought in bargain bins for about $5-30 and for that you pay them monthly

To add I honestly don’t know how you put up with the barrage of Xbox negativity (which is deserved). I put it down to:

A) you are being paid
B) you may have a problem thinking clearly
C) prefer rooting for the underdog, that’s a legit thing too. English people do it by default

Profchaos2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

Yeah Aussies also love an underdog as long as that underdog isn't Xbox as they were too of the game with the 360 then lost their minds

Chevalier2d ago

3 straight years of missing Gamepass targets. Some people are just blinded by their own idiocy. Will be interesting to see if COD does anything this fall

CosmicTurtle2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

He is a troll. Designed to stoke people up on here. We know this.

It’s quite funny.

Popsicle2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

Yet people still allow the troll to derail an entire topic. I don’t understand how moderation allows it.

I literally just skip the comment. This may be the best comment obscure ever made. I don’t know because I didn’t read it. I have read to many thread derailing post from this person to ever devote any time to reading another.

I wish everyone would ignore the trolls so we can have a genuine discussion. Stop feeding it and it will go away. Even just hitting the disagree button feeds it. Thats what it wants. This is the last post I will ever post about obscure because I am feeding them now.

Legit question to Mods. After such a long history of being a troll, how has this poster not been banned?

Profchaos1d 13h ago

Is he though or does he just blindly love Xbox in the same way Sega fans loved the Dreamcast even though it was clearly dead they thought it could be redeemed

Ok yeah he's saracstic and does troll but I enjoy seeing what he comes out with it would be boring here if we never had conflicting opinions

Sonic18812d ago (Edited 2d ago )

Are you insane? You want them to double the amount when the Xbox is already struggling and losing money 🤔

Hofstaderman2d ago

Correction....XBOX is already dead.

Obscure_Observer2d ago

"Are you insane? You want them to double the amount when the Xbox is already struggling and losing money"

As long we get the games I couldn´t care less about a trillion dollar company losing money. That´s their business to worry about. I only care about the games.

And "struggling and losing money"? Really?

"Microsoft reports Xbox’s revenue is up 61% in Q4 FY24 thanks to Activision"

https://venturebeat.com/gam...

61% more revenue and BO6 is not even out yet.

MS will make a sh!t ton of money with that game alone in all platforms. So 2 Billion yearly invested in their *core* business is nothing!

So yeah, I want them to double the investments on Gamepass. Period.

Sonic18812d ago (Edited 2d ago )

"So yeah, I want them to double the investments on Gamepass. Period."

That ain't going to happen. Just because you want it 😂

fr0sty2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

They'll do that, after creating 4 more higher-priced tiers and making the one that currently includes everything only contain games that have been on the market for 4 years.

"Gamepass Ultra to the MAX: Now only $299 per year!"

MrNinosan10h ago

Already $240/year, so we're there within a year, without new tiers.

jznrpg3h ago(Edited 3h ago)

It will be 29.99$ a month eventually 360 a year

Profchaos2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

They are trying to get a return on abk and Bethesda they won't double day one we're lucky we are still getting them now that day one has been removed from base tiers

They want to make money not give it away

OlderGamer171d 20h ago

Sorry O_O, I tought you where loosing it, but i now come to the conclusion that you realy lost it.
The coping from you is not on a stellarr level....

Flakegriffin1d 13h ago (Edited 1d 13h ago )

Homie got 77 dislike and his brain rot will still help him think that he’s right.

1d 10h ago
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MrDead2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

I like how they twist cannibalising game sales into "invests".

No lifetime sales with MS, they'll F-up gaming the same as streaming services have done to the movie industry and it's workforce.

Fishy Fingers2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

Out of interest do you think those 3rd parties signing the deal are unhappy with the severence and have a gun to their head?

Bro probably has a PS+ sub and has library full of Epic launcher free games.

TheNamelessOne2d ago

lol

Pretty much. There's a lot of hate on this site for Gamepass, but put games on the different tiers of the PS subscription, and whenever they get that free day one release, it's an entirely different tune. No talk about how this choice is killing devs.

DarXyde1d 23h ago

Do we think they're unhappy?

Umm...YES...?

They literally need to be paid up front to put games on the service. It's become a way to gain a foothold on the platform.

Do you think Atlus would launch on Game Pass otherwise?

MrDead1d 16h ago

"Out of interest do you think those 3rd parties signing the deal are unhappy with the severence and have a gun to their head?"

I think you mean severance... and I've noticed you don't know what it means either, MS aren't firing the third-parties they're purchasing from.

"Bro probably has a PS+ sub and has library full of Epic launcher free games."

I'm not a console gamer, but yes I do have Epic with a library full of free games... but guess what Epic rotating free games every week doesn't do. It doesn't destroy lifetime sales and cut workers out of residuals. Then you bring up PS+ a service that also doesn't destroy lifetime sales as their model allows for new releases to earn.

DivineHand1252d ago

There are pros and cons to everything. Streaming services like Netflix is no different than cable tv except it is on demand. Services like Netflix has made it so that more studios can get a share in the profit where they can reach more consumers worldwide compared to the old days where the masses will only watch a few new titles per month.

The only negative about streaming services is that it no longer makes any sense to sell DVDs and Blu-rays though it can be argued that those persons may have moved on to building digital libraries for the sake of convenience.

The reason Xbox is doing so poorly is because they are not doing enough to be competitive. Their output of AA and AAA exclusive titles are extremely low compared to the competition and they haven't had a game of the year nominee in years.

Releasing their games the same date on PC is also hurting their console and it would have been more strategic for them to delay those releases by a year similar to what Sony does to maximize profits.

Gamepass alone is not to blame for Xbox's current position because it can be argued that if the service didn't exist and they had the same gaming output as they have now, they would be in an even worst spot.

MrDead1d 17h ago

"Streaming services like Netflix is no different than cable tv except it is on demand."

It's nothing like cable. My comment isn't a guess lifetime sale of films has shrunk to a point it's almost gone and so has the revenue it generated, that is money from competing TV networks, cable/satellite and physical media sales.

Lack of revenue transparency with streaming has meant workers job security and pay has massively diminished, earnings from residuals is almost gone for example the writer for Squid Games because of streaming gets no royalties despite series earning $900 million for Netflix, before streaming he would have royalties form lifetime sales.
Or another example Willow the series was pulled and is no longer watchable here's why: “Willow” was one of nearly 50 titles that Disney+ pulled from its streaming library in May. Other titles included the series “The Mysterious Benedict Society” and the feature film “The One and Only Ivan.” Disney CFO Christine McCarthy explained that Disney was expecting to take a write-down in the June quarter of $1.5 billion-$1.8 billion by removing content from its streaming platforms. By writing down the value of the content assets, Disney can remove that from its balance sheet and reduce its tax bill." Also when you pull a show you no longer need to pay residuals to the workers.

Have you also noticed the drop in quality on sfx or thought some older films look so much better then they do now? This is because the industry now relies on cheap labour for sfx outsourcing abroad, more green screen instead of location shooting and a lot less real extras bring life to a scene.

Streaming in gaming is going to be far worse as we've seen with MS consolidating a massive part of the industry to try and make the service sustainable, lifetime sales being cannibalised by gamespass and a work force that has no unions like SAG is already paying the price.

All streaming does is remove income transparency, cuts the workers from the money and sets flat rates and removes consumer ownership... but CEO's and shareholders will still be ok as they benefit from the industry consolidation.

Huey_My_D_Long1d 13h ago

MrDead is absolutely on fire with the post.

Nothing else I have to add other than that.

DivineHand1251d 13h ago

@MrDead like I said pros and cons. Some of those issues can alleviated with alleviated with regulatory intervention to give more transparency to the industry but unlikely anytime soon with all the lobbying going on.

The issue with the squid game's writer can be attributed to the terms and conditions he agreed to. It happens often in business as no one really knows how popular something will be until you catch that lightning in a bottle. I remember reading about how Nintendo hardly made anything off Pokemon Go dispite Niantic making Billions.

I don't blame streaming services for studios finding was to reduce the cost of making films. That stuff would have happened regardless because of the greed of these corporations. We see that same cost reduction happening in every industry from food to Aerospace.

shadowT2d ago ShowReplies(2)
CrimsonGuardVII2d ago

@badz148 its not, it just straight lied.

gold_drake2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

we know this, we have known this since last year.

this is not new or news.

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