Microsoft / Activision Deal Approval Watch |OT| (MS/ABK close)
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gothmog
Gold Member
Microsoft will do literally anything to get this deal done. Laughable at this point.
DarkMage619
$MSFT
Ignoring the political posturing from multiple sides, if this deal focused purely on the merits it would have been approved a long time ago. It just goes to show how powerful Sony has become. CADE said it best that consumers should be the focus of concern not market leaders.
gothmog
Gold Member
Nah. It's not politics. It's a miscalculation by Microsoft. If they treated Zenimax like Sony treated Bungie the deal would have been closing right now.
Iced Arcade
Member
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Spitfire098
Member
Sony out here dicking down a trillion dollar company...chads
Drell
Member
Imagine talking about a risk of monopoly when you defend MS...
Wulfer
Member
I see "approved with no changes" increasing, if Sony ends up backing itself in a corner over monopolistic practices. Man, the irony at play here the last couple of weeks. Like others have said 1 month to go! For the record I didn't and still don't think the purchase is complete without some change. For MS to win this straight out would be like MS hitting the lottery 100 times.
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adamsapple
Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
Unknown Soldier
Member
I know, right? A company with the world's second largest market cap, whose operating system runs on 95% of the world's computers, a company that is effectively essential to the functioning of modern society. And Sony just dominates them with 98% of high end gaming sales! What an amazing accomplishment!
If there's one thing that is most astounding to me through this saga, it's that Microsoft had somehow manages to frame themselves in this narrative as the underdogs and anyone who has the tiniest amount of intelligence should realize how absolutely fucking insane that is. Microsoft is the technology world's most successful and powerful monopolist, a company which basically controls the world's computers through Windows. They also control the world's corporate offices because you either use Microsoft Office or you aren't a real business. Quietly they are one of the world's most powerful and influential corporations, and Sony has lost the PR war to the point where many people actually credulously believe that Microsoft are the underdogs. Amazing PR work by Microsoft, absolutely stunning.
She's half right, it's not like the Japanese companies are not open to partnerships with MS where they exclude others. MS have secured several Japanese titles which exclude other platforms over many years. Maybe even more of them via less popular titles. it does make it difficult to convince third parties with where xbox install base has ended up though and in an ideal world they shouldn't be able to exclude them.
Maybe MS are angry that they can't just do what they do best and just buy up some massive Japanese publisher like Sega to force customers to switch so now they are lobbying in other ways.
Mentioning Sony maintaining a monopoly via exclusion and Nintendo in the same breath though is absolutely silly. Nintendo owns Japan and they enter agreements for exclusives all the time. if you want to moan about exclusion and monopoly in Japan they would end up worse so they are far from the victim there.
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Jimmyisback
Banned
https://www.windowscentral.com/gami...lled-out-playstations-monopoly-defending-xbox
At a Senate Finance Committee hearing with U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai (via Politico (paywall)), Cantwell referred to the FTC-defined "high-end" game market in Japan, as being utterly dominated by PlayStation. "I'm told that Sony controls a monopoly of 98% of the high-end game market, yet Japan's government has allowed Sony to engage in blatant anti-competitive conduct through exclusive deals and payments to game publishers." Cantwell went on to suggest that Japan's Fair Trade Commission had "failed" to investigate Sony's "exclusionary" conduct, and inquired how the region intended to create a "level playing field."
At a Senate Finance Committee hearing with U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai (via Politico (paywall)), Cantwell referred to the FTC-defined "high-end" game market in Japan, as being utterly dominated by PlayStation. "I'm told that Sony controls a monopoly of 98% of the high-end game market, yet Japan's government has allowed Sony to engage in blatant anti-competitive conduct through exclusive deals and payments to game publishers." Cantwell went on to suggest that Japan's Fair Trade Commission had "failed" to investigate Sony's "exclusionary" conduct, and inquired how the region intended to create a "level playing field."
They are the same bungie is supporting old games everywhere as is zenimax. Until we see a new big game from bungie on the xbox same thing. Its funny a new minecraft is coming day and date on Playstation.
ulantan
Member
Please tell me this leads to someone saying sony canceled scalebound they just told platinum you are not allowed to work with Microsoft. I need that level of pathetic in my life.
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This is great and could lead to the best outcome. No abk deal and money hats of major studio games ended. Everyone wins in that situation.
Jimmyisback
Banned
Should Japan's regulatory agencies be more active in reigning in Sony's anticompetitive practices (timed third party AAA exclusives) when they control 98% of the high performance gaming market?
jm89
Member
At least try and reword some of it.
TheGodfather07
Member
They did! How was scalebound just cancelled all of a sudden. Sony must have had something to do with it because they were scared xbox would dominate Japan. Sony have to stifle xbox in Japan or it would dominate. Now we know why xbox doesn't sell in Japan. Its all because of sony. Actually everything is sonys fault. They are in this position because of sony. Microsoft have done nothing wrong and have done everything right since they entered the industry. Let's hope regulators help to take sony down and we can finally have the Microsoft utopia we've always wanted.
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yet_another_alt
Member
Sony strategy: let's get the fanbase we built up to lobby for our cause.
Microsoft strategy:
Regulatory agencies don't have that sort of power over third party exclusives. The issue is that exclusive partnerships aren't considered illegal and they've been part of the industry globally for decades.
It would be difficult to come up with some law that prevents them. It would affect everyone too. If 90%+ of the high end market is owned by Sony then you can also consider 100% of the low end/handheld market owned by Nintendo where they would have to give up exclusive partnerships too. It would prevent xcloud streaming partnerships with 70% too. What they would need to do is make exclusion in contracts illegal completely but I fear you will just get platform holders asking for complete publisher rights from other devs/publishers instead. You end up making matters worse, whereby the third party developer/publisher has no control over the game vs a limited exclusivity contract.
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Yoboman
Member
Yeah they can get on it right after they ban acquisitions and Gamepass contracts
The Alien
Banned
Someone's gotta lobby for the deal.
Bill is too busy buying farmland so people can't eat meat.
ChorizoPicozo
Member
The PR war is getting nasty.
why?.
why?.
ulantan
Member
There is no war only one group is doing a PR campaign
ChorizoPicozo
Member
...that's right. MS is making it public. sony should be pretty fucking pissed about it.
reinking
Gold Member
Topher
Identifies as young
Oh......so the Nintendo argument is just entirely bullshit now? lol
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Iced Arcade
Member
I'm no American but doesn't Microsoft and Sony contribute shit tons to all kinds of American politicians/parties/lawmakers?
www.opensecrets.org
www.opensecrets.org
Again... Not American so maybe I'm missing something completely.
Microsoft Corp Profile: Summary
Microsoft Corp organization profile. Contributions in the 2022 cycle: $7,604,729. Lobbying in 2021: $10,529,926. Outside Spending in the 2022 cycle: $0.
www.opensecrets.org
Sony Corp Profile: Summary
Sony Corp organization profile. Contributions in the 2024 cycle: $1,250,008. Lobbying in 2024: $2,757,285. Outside Spending in the 2024 cycle: $0.
www.opensecrets.org
Again... Not American so maybe I'm missing something completely.
ChorizoPicozo
Member
I think is a pretty well-known strategy for big corporations
Topher
Identifies as young
I'm no American but doesn't Microsoft and Sony contribute shit tons to all kinds of American politicians/parties/lawmakers?
Microsoft Corp Profile: Summary
Microsoft Corp organization profile. Contributions in the 2022 cycle: $7,604,729. Lobbying in 2021: $10,529,926. Outside Spending in the 2022 cycle: $0.
Sony Corp Profile: Summary
Sony Corp organization profile. Contributions in the 2024 cycle: $1,250,008. Lobbying in 2024: $2,757,285. Outside Spending in the 2024 cycle: $0.
Again... Not American so maybe I'm missing something completely.
Yes, this is our legalized bribery that I have moaned about earlier in this thread. I had a feeling it would come into play and here we are.
What is missing is statements from an elected government official speaking on Sony's behalf alongside the campaign contributions. Right now, that only exists with Microsoft.
drganon
Member
At least get someone outside of your home state for fucks sake. Talk about completely obvious.
Topher
Identifies as young
Microsoft is calling on all favors. That much is certain.
You're the one who said adding a new ABK subdivision would worsen the situation, even while you admit that Bethesda has had no issues thus far. All the examples you cite are at XGS.
Why would ABK regress under Microsoft?
You're also the one that framed 'mismanagement' largely around collaboration, not me.
I'm not sure this influences the deal decision in any way, but it's clearly driven by MS lobbying and might speak to a worsening of relations between both companies.
IFireflyl
Gold Member
What has Bethesda released since the acquisition?
It wasn't meant to be a secret. She is the Senator from Washington state. Microsoft is her constituency. If anything she is supposed to lobby on behalf of them. They're one the biggest employers in the state.
Again her actual statements are spot on, but those who don't like what she had to say try to discredit her. It's not shocking that an employer in her state contributes to her.
Heisenberg007
Gold Journalism
Only for major studio games?
Or are you also including smaller AA titles that get money hat?
Heisenberg007
Gold Journalism
Not really, because those statements imply that Sony was involved in extraordinary anti-competitive practices to gain that market share.
Her statements do not make it clear that Microsoft's poor market share in Japan is mostly self-inflicted and because of their own shortcomings. If one company is not performing well and making terrible decisions, and the second company takes the lead because of that, the second company does not become "anti-competitive" or "bad."
Ghostwire Tokyo
Deathloop
HiFi Rush
Starfield and Redfall are imminent, as is a major ESO expansion.
It's not really relevant how they got there. There are many companies that have gotten their dominant position from performing well. Her question is about if they're using that dominant position to stifle competition by signing exclusive deals that are only reasonable because of their superior marketshare.
Tesla for example had over 70% of the total EV sales in the US in 2021. That share is down to just above 60% now and declining, with more competitive models showing up. Nobody would claim Tesla's dominance is 'anti-competitive'. They earned that position.
You can be sure they'd be accused of being anti-competitive if they were signing deals that hampered the ability of other EV makers to sell their cars in the US.
I'm not taking a position on Sony's exclusivity strategy. Just pointing out that market dominance in itself is not what is being challenged as anti-competitive actions.
ToTTenTranz
Banned
Microsoft spends 4x more than Sony on legalized bribes. Sony's btibes may only buy silence and not support.
"I'm told that Sony controls a monopoly of 98% of the high-end game market, yet Japan's government has allowed Sony to engage in blatant anti-competitive conduct through exclusive deals and payments to game publishers." Cantwell went on to suggest that Japan's Fair Trade Commission had "failed" to investigate Sony's "exclusionary" conduct, and inquired how the region intended to create a "level playing field."
She wasn't talking about what Sony has done to gain market share, but what Japan's government has allowed Sony to do with that market share. Sony use their dominant market position to secure 3rd party exclusivity and puts language in contracts that explicitly excludes their closest competitor.
Banjo64
cumsessed
Microsoft also make exclusivity deals and make payments to game publishers.
This woman has one of the most ignorant takes yet, and that's saying something. Although she's only repeating what her corporate overlord tells her to, like a good pet.
Heisenberg007
Gold Journalism
If her argument is against timed-exclusivity deals, then it falls flat on its face because all companies are equally involved in timed-exclusivity contracts.
Can FTC be blamed for not intervening in Microsoft's timed-exclusivity deals?
MS know their market position in Japan has little to do with third party deals. If it were just third party deals they would have completely dominated Japan during the 360 exclusivity push where PS3 had little of that.
During the 360 era xbox had exclusivity contracts with Japanese publishers for Ace Combat, Star Ocean, Dead or Alive, Bomberman, Tales of Vesperia, The Idolmaster, Tenchu, Ridge Racer, Lost Odyssey, Guilty Gear, Dead Rising, Ninja Gaiden, etc etc. Pretty much any and every Japanese publisher was making exclusives with xbox including some fairly big franchises. They even had mainline FF so couldn't use that excuse. Didn't move the needle though.
Xbox has a brand problem in Japan. It needs to build it over time and market it better, Bill Gates and a burger doesn't help. I'm pretty sure MS knows that even if all Japanese publishers dropped all exclusivity contracts with PS it wouldn't help their marketshare or secure games on their small Japanese install base. They need to invest and cater to the market over time to build it all. You have to wonder why they're upset with just PS contracts too because the likes of Bayonetta 3 and Monster Hunter Rise are probably just as damaging to them in terms of content not releasing on the platform.
They are trying to just stop their specific competitor from making these type of contracts. If it means games release everywhere for everyone then more power to them but I suspect this isn't the sole intention and they will be signing those type of contracts themselves. I bet they're just upset they can't adopt a publisher acquisition strategy in Japan. Wednesday never came for them.
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MasterCornholio
Member
I think they are doing this to divert the attention from something that's worse. Which is permanent exclusives. Not saying they are all bad but permanent exclusives means the game is kept from certain consumers permanently instead of temporarily. It's just the nature of them and what regulators look at the most.
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It's not about exclusive deals in itself. It's having a dominant market position and using exclusivity deals to harm smaller market competitors.
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