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Microsoft Acquires Activision Blizzard


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On 23/01/2022 at 1:25 PM, Dcubed said:

They are not the biggest; Embracer have almost 3x as many studios (111 to be exact!), while Tencent are very much comparable too.

They are certainly the one with the biggest pockets though! And should really be subject to anti-trust; but given the state of the US? I very much doubt that anything will be done to stop this.

Agreed. Sorry was thinking more value wise as a content maker/seller in an entertainment industry. It's ultimately about games and they have the highest value portfolio by far. EA, Sony etc. dont come close.

 

Edited by Choze
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I think, legally, Activision needs to remain acting independently until the deal is finished (so can't do anything to purposefully favour Microsoft), so they can potentially make new deals with Sony up until the sale.

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1 hour ago, Cube said:

I think, legally, Activision needs to remain acting independently until the deal is finished (so can't do anything to purposefully favour Microsoft), so they can potentially make new deals with Sony up until the sale.

I wouldn't have thought that they could make any further behind-the-scenes deals with Sony at this point; but rather they have to honour the existing behind-the-scenes deals that they already have in place.

Much like how Bethesda had to honour their existing Sony exclusivity deals with Deathloop and Ghostwire Tokyo.

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  • 3 weeks later...

https://www.theverge.com/22941636/microsoft-activision-blizzard-acquisition-sec-filing-came-together

Some additional information regarding the ABK purchase from the new SEC filings...

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Microsoft's initial proposal to buy ABK came just a mere 3 days after the initial WSJ article that detailed the big sexual harassment scandal, more or less right when Phil Spencer put out that statement that said he was "troubled" regarding the allegations and that they were "re-evaluating their relationship" with Activision-Blizzard (he wasn't kidding!)

There were a total of 5 companies (sadly un-named) that were in the running to buy ABK.  One outright could not afford the purchase, while the others were stamped out by Microsoft before they even got a chance to make a formal bid.

If the merger is blocked by the FTC, Microsoft must pay ABK a termination fee of between $2-3 Billion.  If Activision Blizzard’s shareholders do not vote to approve the merger for whatever reason though, it must pay Microsoft a termination fee of $2.27 billion.

Bobby Kotick "stands to gain $410,142,075 based on the $95 per share that Microsoft plans to pay — and he has an additional “golden parachute” worth $14,592,302 if he decides to stay and Microsoft then pushes him out anyway. That doesn’t count his 2.2 million stock options, either, which could be worth hundreds of millions of additional dollars depending on how much they cost to exercise".

The SEC filings also confirm that COD Vanguard missed sales expectations.

 

That's crazy just how fast MS pounced on that scandal! They smelt blood in the water like a shark!

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  • 4 months later...

https://www.gamesindustry.biz/playstation-xboxs-call-of-duty-offer-was-inadequate-on-many-levels
 

Jim Ryan spills the beans on the Microsoft-Activision-Sony deal regarding COD!

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Microsoft has promised to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation for three years beyond the current agreement between Activision and Sony, says PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan.

In a statement provided to GamesIndustry.biz, Ryan says the offer was "inadequate on many levels".

The current deal between Sony and Activision Blizzard around Call of Duty is believed to cover the next three releases, including this year's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.

However, Sony says the offer fails to consider the impact on PlayStation gamers.

"I hadn't intended to comment on what I understood to be a private business discussion, but I feel the need to set the record straight because Phil Spencer brought this into the public forum," Ryan stated.

 

"Microsoft has only offered for Call of Duty to remain on PlayStation for three years after the current agreement between Activision and Sony ends. After almost 20 years of Call of Duty on PlayStation, their proposal was inadequate on many levels and failed to take account of the impact on our gamers. We want to guarantee PlayStation gamers continue to have the highest quality Call of Duty experience, and Microsoft's proposal undermines this principle."

Sony airing dirty laundry in public? You love to see it! :D

Edited by Dcubed
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What is he on about? I would have thought that 3 years is very generous considering they are under no obligation to let Devs they own develop games for the opposition.

Won't Sony think of the impact on Xbox gamers not being able to play the new Spider-Man!

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22 minutes ago, bob said:

What is he on about? I would have thought that 3 years is very generous considering they are under no obligation to let Devs they own develop games for the opposition.

Won't Sony think of the impact on Xbox gamers not being able to play the new Spider-Man!

Yeah, it's a very weird thing to kick off about.

Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo are no strangers to paying for games to be exclusive to their consoles. Granted, what MS are doing now is on a much larger scale but it's essentially the same thing. Moneyhatting and exclusives have been around for years and it's a way make your platform more attractive to the consumer.

Jim Ryan is in a panic because if CoD does become a true Xbox exclusive then Sony will lose a stupid amount of money. 

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Companies/execs are hypocrites. Always have been, always will be.
He's right to say something, but he could've also shut his mouth because Sony is playing the same game (albeit to a much lesser degree than Microsoft).

If CoD ends up not coming to PlayStation in the future and if I still don't see any value in entering the XBox/Microsoft gaming world, I'll simply stop playing CoD and find something else :p 

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  • 3 months later...

Well, things are heating up again...

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The Federal Trade Commission is seeking to block technology giant Microsoft Corp. from acquiring leading video game developer Activision Blizzard, Inc. and its blockbuster gaming franchises such as Call of Duty, alleging that the $69 billion deal, Microsoft's largest ever and the largest ever in the video gaming industry, would enable Microsoft to suppress competitors to its Xbox gaming consoles and its rapidly growing subscription content and cloud-gaming business.

In a complaint issued today, the FTC pointed to Microsoft's record of acquiring and using valuable gaming content to suppress competition from rival consoles, including its acquisition of ZeniMax, parent company of Bethesda Softworks (a well-known game developer). Microsoft decided to make several of Bethesda's titles including Starfield and Redfall Microsoft exclusives despite assurances it had given to European antitrust authorities that it had no incentive to withhold games from rival consoles.

"Microsoft has already shown that it can and will withhold content from its gaming rivals," said Holly Vedova, Director of the FTC's Bureau of Competition. "Today we seek to stop Microsoft from gaining control over a leading independent game studio and using it to harm competition in multiple dynamic and fast-growing gaming markets."

Screenshot_20221208-120723.png?width=706

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Pretty good stuff! Not legal here but have done various research work on Innovation/ competition with a business/tech perspective. As in market dynamics, how do different platforms work, app store rules and innovation etc. I probably should have followed more! Assumed it would pass easily because regulators have a reputation of being toothless... and that maybe I wouldnt enjoy games anymore.

The document the FTC released shows Microsoft were way off the mark about making deals. Massive overconfidence on their part and rather sleazy.

Typically when acquisitions go through, nothing needs to be said before rulings. No need to make deals at this stage.

The US FTC wants to block any future acquisitions of the big 5 major publishers. This bit hasn’t been reported in the news oddly.

Windows and Azure are again major issues. Nvidia are named re Azure client restrictions. iOS, Windows and Android are factored in, which is correct. As it’s art/ entertainment, content and exclusivity matter most.

Bethesda used as an example of what will happen to Activision. The game redacted is likely Elder Scrolls.

The console categorisation is spot on (Switch not a PS5 competitor), this is standard market categorisation in business and academia. The US needs to update their anti trust rules if this is not the case.

These agencies (FTC, EU Comm) have access to the best of the best experts, research and modelling.  People saying they know more than these experts have no clue. It’s kind of like arguing against a massive team of surgeons who pioneer new surgery techniques. Its best to leave them to it. 

At the end of the day its fantastic news that this happening. Most of the researchers I always speak to prefer the US taking the lead over the EU, despite what the news say. Big tech companies such as Microsoft always occupy a position of zero risk. But zero risk has such a damaging effect on society, democracy and the economy. They buy easy growth and success but dont care about anything else (Note how Windows and Xbox are run). Innovation can only occur based on their terms which keeps them safe.

I am going to bet on this takeover not going through. This battle isnt worth it over the bigger upcoming ones.

Anyway thats my zombie midnight post done.

Edited by Choze
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https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2022/12/fortnite-video-game-maker-epic-games-pay-more-half-billion-dollars-over-ftc-allegations

$520M in fines. Huge news.

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Epic will pay a $275 million penalty for violating children’s privacy law, change default privacy settings, and pay $245 million in refunds for tricking users into making unwanted charges

 

Edited by Choze
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https://www.theregister.com/2022/12/23/microsoft_activision_deal_argument/

Seems Microsoft want to attack the regulators themselves rather than their case. Some saying Microsoft want the Republican Supreme Court Judges (the same anti abortion judges) to neuter the FTC so they cant stop almost any kind of merger.

That would be worrying, as its an attack on a key institution in a powerful democracy. The damage would be enormous. Not sure the Republicans want another headache for the next election. Ticketmaster and Crypto already have so many people upset. Anti Trust has support from pretty much all the public and political support is also bipartisan. My assumption is that this wont go through and MS are putting on a show.

Regarding earlier stuff I wanted to say something about lobbyists. Pretty much only the MS affiliated lobbyists were talking in favour at that point in time. 

https://www.citizen.org/article/ftc-big-tech-revolving-door-problem-report/

https://therevolvingdoorproject.org/the-industry-agenda-big-tech/

This is much like what happens in the UK. Unbiased experts come on TV or in articles concealing that they are lobbyists.

An example is Terrell McSweeny, former FTC Commissioner listed in the above links: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nn_NFatzKRM

Bear in mind unlike the Meta Within case, the categorisations for video game consoles are well established.

Edited by Choze
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On 24/12/2022 at 9:28 AM, drahkon said:

Thank you for the insights @Choze

 

You are welcome.

No doubt that tech regulation will only increase alongside M&A resistance. Its for the better and there is alot of pressure that has built up. 

https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/dealmakers-grapple-with-unprecedented-us-challenge-mergers-2022-12-27/

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The DOJ and the FTC managed to stop 15 out of the 22 deals, many without a court fight as companies gave up and walked away from their agreement. More recently, they have lost four attempts to block mergers in court, though they are appealing two of the cases.

Lets see how the EU (and the UK) get on with this gaming stuff.

Lots of other interesting movement happening from ad tech to app store regulation. 

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