Microsoft / Activision Deal Approval Watch |OT| (MS/ABK close)

Do you believe the deal will be approved?

  • Yes, will be approved without changes.

    Votes: 221 24.9%

  • Yes, will be approved but with structural changes to ABK.

    Votes: 102 11.5%

  • Yes, will be approved but only with behavioral concessions.

    Votes: 262 29.6%

  • No, will not be approved.

    Votes: 301 34.0%
  • Total voters
    886
  • Poll closed .
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Not open for further replies.
You guys are already jonesn' for the next acquisition? You're addicted. Get help.

Stop It Michael Jordan GIF
 
DrFigs said:
I don't think Sony would have to acquire something as large as Take 2, mostly because it would be irresponsible for the debt/financing they'd have to take on. But I think they do need to be more aggressive.
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Exclusive GTA content for GTA6, 1 year exclusive deal for GTA6, or even a permanent GTA6 console exclusive. Do that and NOT buy Take Two.
 
DeepEnigma said:
Kotick would have stipulations in the contract of the sale. And that is a heavy payday at the very least.
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Well yes he will have generational generational wealth after this, but there was no way he ever wasn't going to, unless criminal charges got filed, so the next best thing is getting him out
 
Heisenberg007 said:
I still don't think Sony will make an impulse buy. They are more strategic with their decisions in this regard.

Having said that, they are now at a serious disadvantage.

Nobody is denying their first-party prowess, but look at the studio count difference now: PlayStation Studios (19) vs. Xbox Game Studios (33)

They will have to increase their first-party portfolio. Otherwise, Xbox would be releasing almost 2x more games than PlayStation Studios every year (assuming they sort their management stuff).

Buying a publisher with 6-7 active studios will be the quickest fix.
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The part you're careful not to mention is how many of these Microsoft studios are releasing multiplatform games.
Zenimax Online studios, Mojang, Treyarch, Sledgehammer, Infinity Ward and all those other COD support studios.

Exclusives also don't only come from first party. This year alone, Sony has two AAA Final Fantasy titles, Forspoken, Stellar Blade and Silent Hill 2. All AAA exclusives from third parties.
 
splattered said:
Sorry but Sony aren't as flush with cash as Microsoft is, if they just went out and tried to buy some big time publishers "in defense" it would eat into their own 1st party budget which may be difficult to recover from. I don't think Sony are foolish enough to take that sort of risk. They will probably buy up some smaller developers, but i just don't see them spending money they need for their own 1st party output. They said themselves revenue from COD marketing draw helps fund their own 1st party development... you think they're all of a sudden going to magically have money to gobble up someone large "in defense" ? Naw not very likely.
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Sony once bid 50 billion on fox cash isn't the only way to get something if they want they could get square, capcom, Konami, ect
 
adamsapple said:
Don't keep us guessing, go on.
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I mean there's so many ways to go on this. It could just be an old school straight up cash in envelopes kind of bribe. Or it could be Microsoft is about to announce a blockbuster Azure deal with the UK.

Obviously Microsoft was applying a ton of pressure on the UK over this. Maybe they just got tired of the constant and unyielding pressure and caved.
 
the pure incompetence of the CMA has given the agency a massive black eye. they are currently rubber stamping the acquisition to get as far away from it as they possibly can and to try to keep at least some dignity.

how do they go modifying provisional findings instead of just putting it in the final report? afterall, to save face they went with the "we got updated figures from microsoft". that doesnt make sense. this was a massive screwup.
 
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Kilau said:
MS told the CMA we were coming for all the Tea this time.
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It was the hobnobs. They threatened to replace hobnobs with oreos on every supermarket shelf in the UK.

And to make matters worse those packets of oreos were going to contain lifetime supplies of gamepass.

television spongebob GIF
 
splattered said:
Why are people acting as if Sony has to respond with some sort of "megaton" purchase of their own?

And what happened to the strength of their own 1st party studios? Sony has games, Xbox does not... remember?

What would be the purpose of Sony buying a huge publisher (That they wouldn't really be able to afford) ?

Just to say "Hey! We can do this too!"

Sorry, i don't think Sony are that foolish.
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Because they have to at this point. This leaves them with alot of uncertainty. Only COD is certain for the next 10 years. But what about every other optional Activision Blizzard game?

Apparently you think T2 has more purchasing power than Sony. If they can make a purchase of 13 billion, so can Sony.

Capom or Square are basically a given at this point. But Sony isn't even the problem. Amazon has their own "Netflix" of gaming ambitions. Their CEOS get off from hearing the word subscription. They are going to interpret this as a greenlight.
 
KungFucius said:
They are a publicly traded company. They can't just throw billions in profit out the window on some hair brained notion that it will win them enough market share and not expect some shareholders to flip out and cause a lot of grief.
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Umm. Yes they can. It can be quantified as an "investment". Xbox throughout its history has incurred massive losses.
 
Murdok said:
Good is winning, and sony extending this purchase just made everyone aware of their anti-consumer practices of pulling cross-platform AAA games from other consoles, and their hypocrisy. And the media covers up its practice, while Ms who hasn't made a big exclusivity contract since Tomb Raider where it was crucified, for the same ones who applaud the attitudes of the Japanese company today, not openly because they don't want this to be an argument for acquisitions of the company of Redmond.

Which keeps Cod on PS but removes other games from the platform, giving Sony and ou fans its own medicine.
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GHG said:
It was the hobnobs. They threatened to replace hobnobs with oreos on every supermarket shelf in the UK.

And to make matters worse those packets of oreos were going to contain lifetime supplies of gamepass.

television spongebob GIF
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And also make them say cookie instead of biscuit.

For King and country, they couldn't allow it.
 
Oddvintagechap said:
Because they have to at this point. This leaves them with alot of uncertainty. Only COD is certain for the next 10 years. But what about every other optional Activision Blizzard game?

Apparently you think T2 has more purchasing power than Sony. If they can make a purchase of 13 billion, so can Sony.

Capom or Square are basically a given at this point. But Sony isn't even the problem. Amazon has their own "Netflix" of gaming ambitions. Their CEOS get off from hearing the word subscription. They are going to interpret this as a greenlight.
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They don't get this. Microsoft has opened the door. They really think that only Microsoft can buy giant publishers.
 
splattered said:
Why are people acting as if Sony has to respond with some sort of "megaton" purchase of their own?

And what happened to the strength of their own 1st party studios? Sony has games, Xbox does not... remember?

What would be the purpose of Sony buying a huge publisher (That they wouldn't really be able to afford) ?

Just to say "Hey! We can do this too!"

Sorry, i don't think Sony are that foolish.
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Simple. Response to stock price drops requires a response. Wall Street runs it's own engine on worth. Executive teams that take bad news with no response get the axe.
 
If the deal does go through, at least we don't have to worry about any big acquisitions from MS for a bit.
But then there is everyone else......sigh.
 
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GHG said:
This is nothing new unfortunately. It became glaringly obvious during the early part of the Xbox One generation when some people where 100% happy to state they were continuing to support xbox due to jingoism alone
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Supporting an American company is jingoism? That concept explains a lot of problems
 
Ozriel said:
The part you're careful not to mention is how many of these Microsoft studios are releasing multiplatform games.
Zenimax Online studios, Mojang, Treyarch, Sledgehammer, Infinity Ward and all those other COD support studios.

Exclusives also don't only come from first party. This year alone, Sony has two AAA Final Fantasy titles, Forspoken, Stellar Blade and Silent Hill 2. All AAA exclusives from third parties.
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While true and I agree with a lot of what you said, the more people switch to Xbox for Activision games, the more expensive those deals become, leading to less of those deals. I don't know if Sony needs a blockbuster massive response, but they need some type of response imo
 
SteelCurtain 59 said:
Well yes he will have generational generational wealth after this, but there was no way he ever wasn't going to, unless criminal charges got filed, so the next best thing is getting him out
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Bobby Kotick has $600M+ to his name before this deal went through. He's already well past generational wealth, many times over.
 
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Oddvintagechap said:
This is going to be disastrous.

Because Sony's response is going to have to be drastic.

And I can see Amazon seeing this as a buffet market.
2u3vkHN.gif

And yes, Blizzard would be the one to leave MS after being bought.
niES6Je.gif
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..if this means an independent Blizzard who use to say "it will be done when it is done" then maybe this is a blessing in disguise and we finally get a WarCraft 4. :D
If even MS gets us a WarCraft 4 that will do.
 
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James Sawyer Ford said:
Bobby Kotick has $600M to his name before this deal went through. He's already well past generational wealth, many times over.
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I agree, that was kind of my point, no matter what happens his great grandkids will be filthy rich, I don't care if he gets a golden parachute I just think the industry will be better off without him and don't think Xbox would be stupid enough to keep him around for any longer than they have to with contracts
 
I'm pretty sure Nintendo wouldn't be too thrilled at seeing Sony buy Capcom and/or Square. Neither would Microsoft, for that matter. It'd go to regulators. Ditto for an attempt at Take Two.

"You allowed Microsoft buy a $69 billion publisher so you have to allow us buy a cheaper publisher" isn't exactly a winning argument. Mindshare, marketshare etc arguments will come into play.

I guess we'll see what happens.
 
Ozriel said:
The part you're careful not to mention is how many of these Microsoft studios are releasing multiplatform games.
Zenimax Online studios, Mojang, Treyarch, Sledgehammer, Infinity Ward and all those other COD support studios.

Exclusives also don't only come from first party. This year alone, Sony has two AAA Final Fantasy titles, Forspoken, Stellar Blade and Silent Hill 2. All AAA exclusives from third parties.
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MS don't own these studios.
Ozriel said:
I'm pretty sure Nintendo wouldn't be too thrilled at seeing Sony buy Capcom and/or Square. Neither would Microsoft, for that matter. It'd go to regulators. Ditto for an attempt at Take Two.

"You allowed Microsoft buy a $69 billion publisher AND Zenimax/Bethesda so you have to allow us buy a cheaper publisher" isn't exactly a winning argument. Mindshare, marketshare etc arguments will come into play.

I guess we'll see what happens.
Click to expand...
 
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I dunno i could definitely see MS outsourcing Kotick but not officially maintaining him as an employee... he's a piece of work but he's a successful piece of work and he's worth his weight in dirty dirty gold.
 
Ozriel said:
I'm pretty sure Nintendo wouldn't be too thrilled at seeing Sony buy Capcom and/or Square. Neither would Microsoft, for that matter. It'd go to regulators. Ditto for an attempt at Take Two.
Click to expand...

All acquisitions "go to the regulators".

Sony buying Capcom or Square would be a wet fart in comparison to Activision. It'd go through without any issues whatsoever. Take 2, same deal, especially now that MS has Activision and Bethesda
 
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Thirty7ven said:
Yup the market is going to hurt Sony with this one.
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I really hope it doesn't, but I am sure it will affect them to some extent, because after Prince of Persia, it was their games that kept me in gaming. However, I currently only play Destiny, so nothing will change for me for the time being.
 
DryvBy said:
Has anyone answered this? Maybe I'm just very stupid but how does buying a publisher create more competition when we know good and well that they're going to push 99% of their products as exclusive?
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Same shit I said from day one, but you guys just laugh and only listen to people who agree with you. Do you think it's normal for one of the 3 consoles to just be a laughing stock on here? "Xbox has no games." This is the argument and constant slander from vocal Sony fans. It's pretty obvious logic that if they have a more attractive offer for gamers, that means people are more likely to give their ecosystem a chance.

That is increased competition right there. Sony is utterly dominant right now. They raised the price of games and their system and the sales just went up. They're a juggernaut.

Furthermore, you can literally just look at the recent past to see what increased competition does. Gamepass has been increasing its offerings. In direct response to this, Sony changed their stance completely and put first party games on their sub a year after release. Xbox gamers win when MS increases GP offerings. Sony gamers win when PS+ gets better. That's the whole theory of competition benefiting consumers.

Go ahead and laugh again. You guys can keep being wrong for all I care.
 
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DeepEnigma said:
Sony just needs to PR "10 year deals," what's the issue?
Ha Ha Smile GIF by The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
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As long as they commit to it and go through all the necessary regulatory checks, no harm no foul ;)

That is if they have capital to outright buy publishers like that in the first place.
 
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Ozriel said:
I'm pretty sure Nintendo wouldn't be too thrilled at seeing Sony buy Capcom and/or Square. Neither would Microsoft, for that matter. It'd go to regulators. Ditto for an attempt at Take Two.

"You allowed Microsoft buy a $69 billion publisher so you have to allow us buy a cheaper publisher" isn't exactly a winning argument. Mindshare, marketshare etc arguments will come into play.

I guess we'll see what happens.
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How swiftly your tune changes. :D

Although, I can see that happening.
 
Punished Miku said:
Same shit I said from day one, but you guys just laugh and only listen to people who agree with you. Do you think it's normal for one of the 3 consoles to just be a laughing stock on here? "Xbox has no games." This is the argument and constant slander from vocal Sony fans. It's pretty obvious logic that if they have a more attractive offer for gamers, that means people are more likely to give their ecosystem a chance.

That is increased competition right there. Sony is utterly dominant right now. They raised the price of games and their system and the sales just went up. They're a juggernaut.

Furthermore, you can literally just look at the recent past to see what increased competition does. Gamepass has been increasing its attractiveness. In direct response to this, Sony changed their stance completely and put first party games on their sub a year after release. Xbox gamers win when MS increases GP attractiveness. Sony gamers win when PS+ gets better. That's the whole theory of competition benefiting consumers.

Go ahead and laugh again. You guys can keep being wrong for all I care.
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bro xbox had to spend close to 80 billion dollars to have a smidgeon of games
 
Mr Moose said:
MS don't own these studios.
Click to expand...

The person I'm responding to has already made the assumption on studio count post acquisition. I'm responding under similar assumptions.

DryvBy said:
Has anyone answered this? Maybe I'm just very stupid but how does buying a publisher create more competition when we know good and well that they're going to push 99% of their products as exclusive?
Click to expand...

A Microsoft with a bigger first party library and a stronger Gamepass offering is a much more competitive Microsoft.
The more consoles Xbox sells, the easier it is to get better commercial terms for games. More revenue means more investment.
Among other things.
 
ChorizoPicozo said:
Click to expand...

Has anyone answered this? Maybe I'm just very stupid but how does buying a publisher create more competition when we know good and well that they're going to push 99% of their products as exclusive
Punished Miku said:
Same shit I said from day one, but you guys just laugh and only listen to people who agree with you. Do you think it's normal for one of the 3 consoles to just be a laughing stock on here? "Xbox has no games." This is the argument and constant slander from vocal Sony fans. It's pretty obvious logic that if they have a more attractive offer for gamers, that means people are more likely to give their ecosystem a chance.

That is increased competition right there. Sony is utterly dominant right now. They raised the price of games and their system and the sales just went up. They're a juggernaut.

Furthermore, you can literally just look at the recent past to see what increased competition does. Gamepass has been increasing its attractiveness. In direct response to this, Sony changed their stance completely and put first party games on their sub a year after release. Xbox gamers win when MS increases GP attractiveness. Sony gamers win when PS+ gets better. That's the whole theory of competition benefiting consumers.

Go ahead and laugh again. You guys can keep being wrong for all I care.
Click to expand...
Why is Sony dominating? Microsoft had more money and more studios without Activision. So why is Sony dominating? Don't pretend Microsoft is some small indie company either.
 
Punished Miku said:
Same shit I said from day one, but you guys just laugh and only listen to people who agree with you. Do you think it's normal for one of the 3 consoles to just be a laughing stock on here? "Xbox has no games." This is the argument and constant slander from vocal Sony fans. It's pretty obvious logic that if they have a more attractive offer for gamers, that means people are more likely to give their ecosystem a chance.

That is increased competition right there. Sony is utterly dominant right now. They raised the price of games and their system and the sales just went up. They're a juggernaut.

Furthermore, you can literally just look at the recent past to see what increased competition does. Gamepass has been increasing its attractiveness. In direct response to this, Sony changed their stance completely and put first party games on their sub a year after release. Xbox gamers win when MS increases GP attractiveness. Sony gamers win when PS+ gets better. That's the whole theory of competition benefiting consumers.

Go ahead and laugh again. You guys can keep being wrong for all I care.
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Feelings often get in the way of reason.
 
DryvBy said:
Why is Sony dominating? Microsoft had more money and more studios without Activision. So why is Sony dominating? Don't pretend Microsoft is some small indie company either.
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Is this what you do? You just ask one question after another because you hate the answers? I can answer that one too. Has to do with decisions last gen, the difficulty of starting new studios and the time that takes, and the increased cost and development time associated with AAA games.
 
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