Tag Archives: Call of Duty

CMA Narrows Scope Of Concerns In Microsoft – Activision Review

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The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) issued updated provision. From the review:

“In February, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) published provisional findings setting out that the deal raises competition concerns in relation to both console gaming and cloud gaming services in the UK. The publication of the provisional findings initiated a period of consultation in which the CMA invited responses to those findings from interested parties and continued to gather further information.

“The CMA has received a significant amount of new evidence in response to its original provisional findings. Having considered this new evidence carefully, together with the wide range of information gathered before those provisional findings were issued, the CMA inquiry group has updated its provisional findings and reached the provisional conclusion that, overall, the transaction will not result in a substantial lessening of competition in relation to console gaming in the UK.

“The most significant new evidence provided to the CMA relates to Microsoft’s financial incentives to make Activision’s games, including Call of Duty (CoD), exclusive to its own consoles. While the CMA’s original analysis indicated that this strategy would be profitable under most scenarios, new data (which provides better insight into the actual purchasing behavior of CoD gamers) indicates that the strategy would be significantly loss-making under any plausible scenario. On this basis, the updated analysis now shows that it would not be commercially beneficial to Microsoft to make CoD exclusive to Xbox following the deal, but that Microsoft will instead have the incentive to continue to make the game available on PlayStation.

The CMA’s addendum to its provisional findings today relates only to competition in the supply of consoles and not to competition in the supply of cloud gaming services, where the CMA is continuing to carefully consider the responses in relation to the original provisional findings. The CMA’s merger investigation continues, and it remains due to issue its final report by 26 April 2023…

GameSpot reported that a key regulator has said it provisionally no longer believes Microsoft’s proposed deal to buy Activision Blizzard would result in a lessening of competition in the console space, paving the way for the purchase to go through.

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority said on Friday that it has narrowed the scope of its concerns about the deal. Importantly, though, the deal is not complete, and the CMA still has concerns about Microsoft’s bid to buy Activision Blizzard in the are of cloud gaming.

A spokesperson for Activision shared a statement with GameSpot about the CMA decision:

“The CMA’s updated provisional findings show an improved understanding of the console gaming market and demonstrate a commitment to supporting players and competition. Sony’s campaign to protect its dominance by blocking our merger can’t overcome the facts, and Microsoft has already presented effective and enforceable remedies to address each the CMA’s remaining concerns. We know this deal will benefit competition, innovation, and consumers in the UK.”

TechCrunch reported that a Microsoft spokesperson sent this statement:

“We appreciate the CMA’s rigorous and thorough evaluation of the evidence and welcomes updated provisional findings. This deal will provide more players with more choice in how they play Call of Duty and their favorite games. We look forward to working with the CMA to resolve any outstanding concerns.”

TechCrunch also reported that Microsoft sent an updated statement – attributed to Brad Smith, it’s vice char and president:

“We appreciate the CMA’s additional detailed and objective analysis. Its update underscores a growing consensus by those with access to the most current data that this deal will create more competition in the console market, not less.”

Personally, I feel like this situation is dragging on and on, and would like to see it resolved. There are plenty of gamers who want to see Microsoft acquire Activision Blizzard.

Microsoft Gives Sony 10 Years To Develop Call of Duty Alternatives

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Microsoft has said it believes 10 years is long enough for Sony to develop rival offerings to the Call of Duty franchise, VideoGamesChronicle reported.

According to VideoGamesChronicle, regulators in the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) have expressed concerns that Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard could significantly reduce PlayStation’s ability to compete given that it would see Microsoft gain ownership of the Call of Duty series, which Sony has called “irreplaceable.”

In a bid to gain approval for the deal, Microsoft has told regulators it’s willing to make each new Call of Duty game available on the PlayStation the same day it comes to Xbox for a 10-year period, with full content and feature parity. In a newly published document, Microsoft has told the CMA that it believes a decade is long enough for Sony to create alternatives to Call of Duty.

Gamerant reported that while many gaming studios support Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard, it’s only natural that the company’s biggest rival wouldn’t be so keen on accepting it. Over the past months, Sony has come up with a whole slew of reasons why the deal should not go through without major changes to, for example, Activision Blizzard’s held IP rights, and Call of Duty is at the center of it all.

According to Gamerant, Microsoft just released a fairly heavily redacted response to the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority on the topic of whether Activision Blizzard should keep Call of Duty, in the event that the acquisition gets greenlit by all the pertinent authorities. One of the most interesting comments Microsoft issued via this document is that the company believes Sony would be more than capable of producing a solid alternative to the Call of Duty franchise over the course of the next ten years.

From the document:

“Microsoft’s proposal is that the remedy will apply for a period of 10 years.

“At the Remedies Hearing the CMA asked Microsoft if the 10-year duration is sufficient and whether there would be a “cliff edge” for Sony at the end of this period. The 10-year period is [redacted]. Microsoft considers that a period of 10 years is sufficient for Sony, as a leading publisher and console platform, to develop alternatives to CoD. The 10-year term will extend into the next console generation [redacted]. Moreover, the practical effect of the remedy will go beyond the 10-year period, since games downloaded in the final year of the remedy can continue to be played for the lifetime of that console (and beyond, with backwards compatibility).”

GameRant also reported that this information should be considered with additional context, of course. Specifically, Microsoft offered Sony a 10-year CoD deal, during which time the franchise would remain available on PlayStation consoles. Sony did not accept it, however, and continued issuing statements in an attempt to put the deal in a negative light with authorities.

The aforementioned document has come as a response to the CMA’s latest Remedies Hearing, where the regulator asked for Microsoft’s input on a number of issues concerning the Activision Blizzard deal.

Sony argues that Xbox’s Call of Duty offer would “irreparably harm competition” in the grand scheme of things.

In my opinion, the best thing that can happen is for the regulators to decide in favor of Microsoft. There are already some games made by Blizzard on Xbox, including the Diablo IV Early Access Beta Weekend, and the upcoming Diablo IV Open Beta. Those same betas appear to be available on PlayStation as well.

Microsoft Announces Partnership With Cloud Gaming Provider Boosteroid

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Microsoft posted news in its News Center titled: “Microsoft announces partnership with cloud gaming provider Boosteroid to bring more games to more players around the world”. From the News Center post:

Microsoft Corp. and Boosteroid on Tuesday announced a 10-year agreement to bring Xbox PC games to Boosteroid’s cloud gaming platform. Boosteroid, which has its software development team in Ukraine, recently surpassed 4 million users globally and has become the largest independent cloud gaming provider in the world. The agreement will also enable Activision Blizzard PC titles to be streamed by Boosteroid customers after Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard closes.

When combined with other partnerships recently announced by Microsoft, this means popular franchises such as “Call of Duty” will surpass more than 150 million additional players, and make games built by Xbox Game Studios, Bethesda and Activision Blizzard playable on multiple cloud gaming services and subscriptions.

“We believe in the power of games to bring people together. That’s why Xbox is committed to give everyone more ways to play their favorite games, across devices,” said Phil Spencer, CEO of Gaming, Microsoft. “Bringing Xbox PC games to Boosteroid members, including Activision Blizzard titles such as ‘Call of Duty’ once the deal closes, is yet another step in realizing that vision.”

“Boosteroid shares Microsoft’s vision of bringing games to as many people, places and platforms as possible. It has long been our goal to provide gamers with an opportunity to enjoy their favorite titles on and device that is close at hand,” said Ivan Shviachenko, Boosteroid CEO. “Today’s announcement is yet another step in this direction. Also, with our development team based in Ukraine, we appreciate Microsoft’s ongoing commitment to Ukraine, and we will be working together on an initiative supporting our local game development community to invest further in the economic recovery of the country.”

In addition to Ukraine itself, Boosteroid now serves gamers in the United States, United Kingdom, and countries across the European Union. It operates through data center operations located in six U.S. states, including Microsoft’s home state of Washington, as well as in the U.K., France, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Slovakia, Romania, Ukraine, and Serbia.

The gaming community is a vibrant part of Ukraine’s software ecosystem. Microsoft recently added support for the Ukrainian language for the Xbox console dashboard, PC and mobile apps. In spring 2023, Microsoft will launch PC Game Pass in Ukraine.

“This partnership builds on the $430 million in technology and financial assistance we have provided Ukraine since Russia’s unlawful invasion, and it exemplifies the steps we will continue to take to support Ukraine’s 160,000 software developers,” said Brad Smith, Microsoft Vice Chair and President. “It also adds to our recent agreements with Nintendo and NVIDIA, making it even more clear to regulators that our acquisition of Activision Blizzard will make ‘Call of Duty’ available on far more devices than before.”

The Wall Street Journal reported that Brad Smith said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal that the company wants to show through the distribution agreements that its plan to buy Activision will improve users’ access to “Call of Duty.”

Competition authorities in the EU, the U.S., and the U.K., which are examining the acquisition, have said they are concerned it could allow Microsoft to control how consumers access Activision games, potentially reducing competition in the videogame market.

“If the only argument is that Microsoft is going to withhold ‘Call of Duty’ from other platforms, and we’ve now entered into contracts that are going to bring this to many more devices and many more platforms, that is a pretty hard case to make to a court,” Mr. Smith said. He said any decision on the deal would be subject to final judicial review.

Personally, I think Microsoft is making smart choices by providing ‘Call of Duty’ to various other platforms, including Boosteriod, Nintendo, and NIVIDIA. The contracts involved will go into effect if the regulators decide to let Microsoft buy Activision Blizzard.

Microsoft And NVIDIA Announce Expansive New Gaming Deal

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Microsoft posted “Microsoft and NVIDIA announce expansive new gaming deal” on its Microsoft News Center:

On Tuesday, Microsoft and NVIDIA announced the companies have agreed to a 10-year partnership to bring Xbox and PC games to the NVIDIA GeForce NOW cloud gaming service, which has more than 25 million members in over 100 countries.

The agreement will enable gamers to stream Xbox PC titles from GeForce NOW to PCs, macOS, Chromebooks, smartphones and other devices. It will also enable Activision Blizzard PC titles, such as Call of Duty, to be streamed on GeForce NOW after Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision closes.

“Xbox remains committed to giving people more choice and finding ways to expand how people play,” said Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spenser. “This partnership will help grow NVIDIA’s catalog of titles to include games like Call of Duty, while giving developers more ways to offer streaming games. We are incredibly excited to offer gamers more ways to play the games they love.”

“Combining the incredibly rich catalog of Xbox first party games with GeForce NOW’s high-performance streaming capabilities will propel cloud gaming into a mainstream offering that appeals to gamers at all levels of interest and experience,” said Jeff Fisher, senior vice president for GeForce at NVIDIA. “Through this partnership, more of the world’s most popular titles will now be available from the cloud with just a click, playable by millions more gamers.”

The partnership delivers increased choice to gamers and resolves NVIDIA’s concerns with Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard. NVIDIA therefore is offering its full support for regulatory approval the acquisition.

Microsoft and NVIDIA will begin work immediately to integrate Xbox PCgames into GeForce NOW, so that GeForce NOW members can stream PC games they buy in the Windows Store, including third-party partner titles where the publisher has granted streaming rights to NVIDIA. Xbox PC games currently available in third-party stores like Steam or Epic Games Store will also be able to be streamed through GeForce NOW.

Visit the GeForce NOW website for more information on the service and follow along every GFN Thursday for the latest news, including release dates for upcoming Microsoft game titles coming to the GeForce NOW service.

The agreement was announced today at a Microsoft press conference in Brussels, Belgium. Microsoft also star today that it finalized a 10-year agreement to bring the latest version of Call of Duty to the Nintendo platforms following the merger with Activision.

CNBC reported that the announcement comes after Microsoft President Brad Smith met with European Union officials on Tuesday in a bid to convince them that its planned $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard will be good for competition.

According to CNBC, Microsoft is offering the olive branch to stop the takeover from being blocked and thereby expand its gaming unit, which represents 9% of its total revenue. Microsoft President Brad Smith said if the Activision deal closes, it will bring all Activision Blizzard titles to GeForce Now.

Personally, as much as I’d love to see Microsoft acquire Activision Blizzard, I’m not entirely certain that the company will be able to appease all of the regulators who have examined this merger. Perhaps the offering of ten years of access to Call of Duty to NVIDIA and Nintendo will convince regulators to reconsider their opinion of the acquisition. In the meantime, I looks as though Microsoft is very confident that the acquisition will go through.

Activision Launched a Call of Duty: WWII Alexa Skill

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Activision has launched the Call of Duty: WWII Alexa Skill. It is currently available in Beta, and will function as an additional ally for Call of Duty: WWII players.

The Call of Duty: WWII Alexa Skill features an array of support options, including personalized player recommendations, updates on in-game achievements and the ability to stay connected with and compare your play with friends.

Did you just play a match of Call of Duty: WWII and want to know how you did as well as how to improve your chances next time? Ask Alexa how to improve your skills, and you’ll get a personalized recommendation ready for your next match. Want to know if your friends are online and playing Call of Duty: WWII? Just ask Alexa. The skill supports Call of Duty: WWII and is available free of charge, through the Alexa companion app.

The Call of Duty: WWII Alexa Skill employs AI and machine learning to create personalized recommendations, including specific loadouts, play styles, maps, modes, perks and divisions for each player. Using cluster analysis, the machine learnng model analyzes more than 20 factors, including accuracy, movement, engagement distance, K/D, shots, score per minute, time played, and relationships to other players to make personalized recommendations for each player.

The Skill then employs natural language generation to create personalized responses to 2,500 questions about the game and an individual’s performance. Using a soldier-like voice, the Skill can deliver 250,000 distinct responses that incorporate real-time statistics, status and recommendations from the game.

There are 15 categories of features in the Call of Duty Alexa Skill for Call of Duty: WWII, including:

  • Personalized recommendations to improve your skills
  • Match summaries, and highlights of your recent gameplay
  • Social features, including whether friends are currently playing, and comparing your stats and achievements to theirs.
  • Contract and order status, both during and after a match, so that you see how close you are to completing the contract and earning a reward
  • Latest in-game news, including events and game updates
  • Game and feature descriptions

Call of Duty Halloween Scream Event has Started

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Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare has added a bunch of fun, Halloween related, things to the game. The event is called “Willard Wyler’s Halloween Scream” and it will last until November 1, 2017.

A press release states that this community event will allow players to acquire all-new Halloween-themed loot, to participate in XP-boosting events, to play through a new zombies mode and to receive exclusive free items that are only available during the event.

The Halloween Scream event includes:

  • Free Halloween-themed cosmetic item every Friday, along with one final gift on October 30, 2017.
  • Halloween-themed gear and loot, including brand-new zombie-themed Rig skins, available to earn
  • “Boss Battle” mode, which starts on October 13, 2017. It allows players to take on their favorite final bosses from each of the Infinite Warfare zombies modes. It begins with the first chapter, Zombies in Spaceland, and continues with the following chapters becoming available, two per week, ending with the ultimate battle in The Beast from Beyond. (Players must own DLC packs to access DLC chapters.)
  • Return of Gesture Warfare multiplayer mode to celebrate Halloween, which runs now through October 12, 2017, and allows fans to use gestures to humiliate and annihilate their opponents.
  • Carnage, a fan-favorite multiplayer map from the Retribution DLC pack, free to play and with double XP for all players from October 12, 2017, through November 1, 2017.