ORIGINAL STORY 4.45pm UK: Sony says it “welcomes the announcement” by the UK Competition and Markets Authority that it will further investigate Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard. In a statement to GamesIndustry.Biz, the platform owner said that “by giving Microsoft control over Activision games like Call of Duty, this deal would have significant negative implications for players and the future of the gaming industry.” “We want to guarantee that PlayStation players continue to have the highest quality gaming experience,” Sony continued, “and we appreciate the CMA’s focus on protecting players.” Eurogamer Newscast: Ubisoft moves forward, bets big on Assassin’s Creed. Earlier this month, the CMA announced it would escalate Microsoft’s proposed takeover of Activision Blizzard to “Phase 2”, meaning the regulator will now conduct a more in-depth investigation into the takeover’s impact on the market. CMA listed several reasons for its decision, but chief among them was the value of the Call of Duty franchise to increasing console sales. Her stated concern was that Microsoft could turn Call of Duty into an Xbox-exclusive title in the future, and it could then seriously hurt future PlayStation sales. Microsoft has pledged to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation for “several years to come,” but PlayStation’s Jim Ryan responded that it was “lacking on many levels.” In the end, only one side of this argument will come out happy, and we have a while to find out which one.
