After months of reviews, 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:interviews, and 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:skepticism from the UK's markets watchdog, the CMA has just issued a press release stating that it now believes the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Microsoft-168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Activision merger "will not result in a substantial lessening of competition in relation to console gaming in the UK." That's a significant turnabout from just a few months ago when the CMA said the very same merger "168澳洲幸运5开奖网:could harm gamers."
that new evidence has "provisionally" alleviated concerns related to the UK's console market. Chief among that evidence is new anal🐬ysis that indicates that Microsoft has little to gain from making Call of Duty exclusive to PC and Xbox consoles, writing, "this strategy would be significantly loss-making under any plausible scenario."
The CMA added: "The updated an🐻alysis 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 still have the incentive to continue to make the game available on PlayStation."
However, the CMA noted that this provisional finding only relates to the console market. The CMA's initial concerns that the Microsoft-Activision merger could🐬 "stifle" competition inꩲ the cloud gaming market have yet to be addressed, although the watchdog saiꩵd it "is continuing to ca💫refully consider the responses provided in relation to the original provisional findings."
Although it's not stated explicitly, Microsoft's strategy of signing ten-year 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:contracts to ensure Call of Duty remains on rival platforms likely had something to do with the CMA's provisional statements. Microsoft has been saying all along that it had no intentions of restricting Cal🌌l of Duty sales as it didn't make any financial sense, and signing contracts to that effect might have bee𓆏n the proof the CMA needed.
Sony, meanwhile, has refused to sign a similar ten-year contract with Microsoft, contending that ten years is both not long enough and that Microsoft would simply break its own contract. Microsoft seems to have tired of Sony's constant complaining and has since told its rival to 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:simply make its own Call of Duty i🐽f it's so worried about losing access followin♊g the merger.
The CMA is due to issue its final decision on the Microsoft-Activision merger 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:on April 26.
