The saga of Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard continues, with the FTC filing an injunction to block the former. Sony is opposed to the deal; in a deposition from April with the FTC, SIE President Jim Ryan said that if it passes, it couldn’t share details with Activision about its next console (via Stephen Totilo of Axios).
While concerning given the number of Call of Duty players on Activision, one has to wonder if this wouldn’t exacerbate Sony’s concerns about the publisher releasing sub-par ports of its games on PlayStation. Interestingly, Ryan was asked about his company working with Minecraft developer Mojang after Microsoft acquired it. The response is redacted, but he “supports this concern.”
Ryan also revealed some collaboration between PlayStation and Activision on technical features in Call of Duty. What these are and the results remain redacted. Also, as Totilo notes, it’s unknown if Ryan expects the same kind of disclosure from Microsoft to studios like Bungie and Sony San Diego. They’re owned by Sony and still support Destiny 2 and MLB The Show on Xbox consoles.
As always, time will tell how the merger pans out. While the FTC remains an issue for Microsoft’s acquisition, it also has to deal with the deal being blocked in the UK by the Competition and Markets Authority. It planned to launch an appeal, but may also consider withdrawing Acitivison from the region to get around the ban.
In an FTC v MS/ABK deposition, PlayStation chief Jim Ryan said that, if deal closes, Sony couldn't tell Activision about its next console
Is then asked about Sony working with Mojang (Minecraft) after MS bought them. Discussion is redacted but Ryan says it supports this concern pic.twitter.com/M86CBm3CcY
— Stephen Totilo (@stephentotilo) June 21, 2023
The shoe is sometimes on the other foot. Left unexplained in these exchanges is what Sony expects Microsoft to share with Bungie (Destiny) or Sony San Diego (MLB) when those studios make games for MS platforms, present or future
— Stephen Totilo (@stephentotilo) June 21, 2023
In a declaration in December, Ryan had said that PlayStation and Activision collaborated on technical features for Call of Duty. Redactions keep us from knowing what came of that. pic.twitter.com/PnCeQPtbNC
— Stephen Totilo (@stephentotilo) June 21, 2023
