Microsoft insists it never planned to remove ‘Call of Duty’ from PlayStation

future call of Duty This is one of many defining moments in negotiations between Microsoft and the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to buy Activision Blizzard. The Redmonds state ad nauseam that their intentions are not to convert shooter belligerent in an Xbox exclusive game, and this Thursday they intend to ratify it with comments Amy Hoodits financial director.

The Microsoft executive’s written statement will be presented today on the final day of testimony and closing arguments. However, some very interesting fragments have already been discovered. Tom Warren of edge, shared two segments in which Hood notes that his company never raised the issue of removal call of Duty from game console.

In this sense, the words of the Microsoft CFO are quite straightforward:

“The possibility of making call of Duty Xbox exclusivity was never evaluated or discussed with me, nor was it mentioned in any of the presentations or discussions with the board of directors. I understood the need to keep call of Duty on other platforms. The strategic rationale and financial value of the acquisition is focused on making Activision games more accessible, not less.”

Amy Hood, Microsoft CFO.

Another important point is that, according to Hood, after the completion of the purchase Activision Blizzard needs to make money immediately. “The purchase was supposed to be financially beneficial for Microsoft shareholders from the first year. This means that the acquisition should have immediately contributed to the increase in earnings per share, ”said the head. Something that is unlikely to happen if removed from call of Duty PlayStation, since most of this franchise’s revenue comes from the Sony platform.

Microsoft says it doesn’t want to call of Duty be an Xbox exclusive

Logically, Amy Hood’s comments line up with those of other Microsoft executives such as Brad Smith, Phil Spencer, or Satya Nadella. While it’s also a reality that Sony may claim its words are focused on the immediate impact of the Activision Blizzard acquisition rather than a long-term commitment to keep call of Duty on the PlayStation.

Yesterday, during my speech at the booth, Nadella promised “100%” to continue publishing call of Duty on consoleif the purchase is made. Although the Microsoft CEO didn’t miss the opportunity to throw a dart at Sony, saying that if there are platform-exclusive games, it’s because PlayStation has implemented them as part of its competitive strategy.

“If it were up to me, I would like to get rid of all [juegos] console exclusives. But it’s not for me to define, especially as a player with a low market share in the console market. Dominant player there [por PlayStation] You have defined market competition with exclusives, so this is the world we live in. I have no love for this world,” said Satya Nadella.

A few hours before it was Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard, who answered questions from Microsoft and FTC lawyers. One of the highlights of his statement was the recognition that the company had made a mistake in not call of Duty to Nintendo Switch.

The violent figures COD go to playstation

Another strength of the fourth day of hearings between Microsoft and the FTC was the disclosure of data that must remain confidential. Several documents provided by Sony were badly edited, revealing information that should be kept from the public. Among the most relevant were violent figures who call of Duty go to PlayStation.

According to the documentation in question, in 2021, the PlayStation made about $800 million with call of Duty only in the United States. The figure has risen to $1,500 million when global income is taken into account.

But that is not all. Although the numbers are not entirely clear, the document seems to indicate that the players call of Duty generated average annual cost $15.9 billion between 2019 and 2021 on PlayStation. That’s taking into account spending on the platform’s “hardware, accessories, subscriptions, games, and other services.”