New twist in the case of the takeover of Activision-Blizzard. Microsoft summons Sony to appear in court to force it to reveal its secrets.
The acquisition of Activision-Blizzard continues to create debate among international regulators. Microsoft is encountering a lot of reluctance from the main authorities, including the FTC, which wants to sue the Redmond firm. The American competition policeman indeed filed a complaint in December 2022 against the parent company of Xbox. Since then, she has been trying somehow to find a way out of this bad patch using all possible legal arguments. The latest, to prove that obtaining strong licenses like Call of Duty or World of Warcraft would not jeopardize the sustainability of Sony and its PS5.
Sony forced to unveil its future excluded PS5?
The noose is tightening around Microsoft. While the American giant has laid off more than 10,000 employees, it is trying by all means to validate the historic takeover of Activision-Blizzard for the modest sum of $68 million. Opposition from regulators is strong and in the United States, the competent authority is even ready to drag the Redmond firm to court. To defend itself, Xbox wants to prove that Sony does not need Call of Duty and the group’s strong licenses to survive and ensure the good health of the PS5 and its future consoles.
New documents from the FTC indeed show that Microsoft has subpoenaed its competitor to appear before the administrative tribunal of the regulator. With this manoeuvre, the American giant seeks to have SIE reveal “ the extent of its current production and schedule “. In other words, Microsoft would like Sony to reveal the schedule of its future PS5 exclusives to defend its case. According to documents shared by journalist Stephen Totilo, Sony has until January 27 to respond to this subpoena. The Japanese giant to either oppose it or accept its rival’s request and answer questions. If Sony were to testify, the Redmond firm could then force it to reveal some of its secrets.
We remember that this was what happened during the lawsuit between Apple and Epic Games which had lifted the veil on certain internal strategies. We remember in particular Microsoft’s desire to offer the Xbox Game Pass on PlayStation or Nintendo consoles, or even Sony’s conditions for crossplay.
