Microsoft / Activision Deal Approval Watch |OT| (MS/ABK close)
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splattered
Member
Dude there isn't going to be any divestment here, I don't know why you keep saying this?
Bernardougf
Member
Dont know about south africa.. but Brazil (my country) was exactly like this ... even if they would never have blocked .... here is all about the dirty money no questions askedMicrosoft to South African regulators.
drganon
Member
Because posters like Chuck get off on Microsoft playing take away.
splattered
Member
Yes I agree 100% ... Like I said maybe buy some interesting IP should anything come up for sale but no more big studio acquisitions.
It's shortcut. Albeit more expensive.
Just look at the market. You have plenty of newly formed studios that started in circa 2018 and have yet to release a game. Benzies (GTA peep) founded his studio in 2018 and they have yet to release their first game. Even Microsoft founded The Initiative in 2018 and Perfect Dark will be out maybe in 2024.
Setting up new studio currently is long process and you don't even know if everything will come together at the end (see The Initiative). It's way easier to buy existing studio, because they have development pipelines already in place, existing staff and even some IP's in some cases.
So the question is. Do you really want to wait 5-6 years (at best) to find out if studio that you created can even make a game? Won't you rather spend XYZ million dollars (since you are already swimming in millions) on existing studio? I think that it is way better business decision.
While I don't think Microsoft will try to buy big publisher, I think they will go after small and mid sized studios. Certain Affinity just make sense since they are working on Tatanka for Halo Infinite and there is rumor that they are making Monster Hunter clone for Xbox as an exclusive. Avalanche makes sense since they are making Contraband - live service game with years of support planned. Same for Asobo thanks to Flight Simulator. And if they want to expand in Japan, there is PlatinumGames and even studios like Crytek or IO Interactive makes a ton of sense.
Just look where Microsoft ended up, because they refused to snatch studios like BioWare or Remedy in the past. The had to spend 80 billion dollars to course correct.
We can discuss how Sony only bought studios that they worked with in the past, but the fact is that they BOUGHT studios with pipelines and staff already in place. Last studio that Sony founded was PixelOpus in 2014. That should tell you everything you need to know. Even Team Asobi was spun off of dead corpse of Japan Studio.
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I think that everything is hinging on CMA's decision that should be published on 26th. If they approve it, the deal is 90% going through since EU was less concerned than CMA and FTC is just sad at this point.
TheGodfather07
Member
theres nothing more to know. its going through. cod will stay multiplat and everyone will quicky forget all about it a few weeks after approval. maybe the whole cycle starts again when microsoft try to buy EA next year or something because they still aint competing and they will show pie charts again.
ChorizoPicozo
Member
isn't obvious?
those people know and feel that ABK is not that appealing in the context of you know what.
70B for established franchises that are not going to make the difference for them. i mean...who is actually excited about MS owning Candy Crush?.
WoW/Diablo = PC centric.
Overwatch = Free to Play
CoD = known quantity.
the persecution complex is real AF.
all these NPD numbers/european charts and the state of the First Party games is taking a toll in their psyche
the only thing they have is to keep hoping for more acquisitions....things are dire for them. they feel MS/Xbox need to do something ASAP or else:
POKEYCLYDE
Member
I think there's a difference of wanting MS to buy more studios and thinking that they will. Microsoft has said their not done. It's not begging to speculate what developer or publisher is next.
reinking
Gold Member
It takes too long. I don't want to wait 5-6 years to fanboy.
I think they need to buy a bunch of support studios to assist getting games out faster. Also if the abk deal goes through support studios so abk studios like toys for bob can make games again.
Timberwolf25
Member
Summary of the current thread by some posters seems to be:
Any regulatory body that has approved or is leaning to approve the deal has to be corrupt or bought off my by MS.
or
Any regulatory body that is questioning or leaning towards disapproval of the deal are doing their due deligence and are of the utmost integrity.
The logic pretzels are mind bending sometimes.
Any regulatory body that has approved or is leaning to approve the deal has to be corrupt or bought off my by MS.
or
Any regulatory body that is questioning or leaning towards disapproval of the deal are doing their due deligence and are of the utmost integrity.
The logic pretzels are mind bending sometimes.
Ar¢tos
Member
Because the obvious solution to a studio management problem is to buy more studios to manage!
Helghan
Member
sainraja
Member
Trying to spin that as the FTC supporting Sony is a bit childish. Sony might have the dominant position in the market right now, but you can't also ignore the two companies' profiles when it comes to wealth. Sony does not dominate when it comes to overall wealth compared to Microsoft.
It is no one but Microsoft's fault that Xbox is in the position that it is in, which is the very reason they even had to go out and buy big publishers in the industry to begin with.
The only reason Sony has been able to maintain its position is simply because MS stopped trying. Their interest grew simply due to "outside" threats they identified as being other big tech companies; which is also one of the reasons they entered the industry, when at that time, the outside threat was identified to be Sony in the living room with their console.
FTC isn't protecting Sony anymore than Microsoft is lol. That is a silly thing to say.
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There are many reasons why building from scratch can be worse than buying established talent that's already working in a functional setup.
Buying gets you a back catalogue in Gamepass, and gets you games faster. Not to mention IP, in some cases.
isn't obvious?
those people know and feel that ABK is not that appealing in the context of you know what.
70B for established franchises that are not going to make the difference for them. i mean...who is actually excited about MS owning Candy Crush?.
WoW/Diablo = PC centric.
Overwatch = Free to Play
CoD = known quantity.
the persecution complex is real AF.
all these NPD numbers/european charts and the state of the First Party games is taking a toll in their psyche
the only thing they have is to keep hoping for more acquisitions....things are dire for them. they feel MS/Xbox need to do something ASAP or else:
Well, this post certainly explains the thought process behind most of your posts here.
I'm pretty sure MS exiting the game business becomes much more unlikely after you spend $70bn on a video games company. And the value of my GP subscription shoots up significantly with Activision's IP folded in.
The ABK acquisition is quite appealing indeed! Saves me a ton of money if it goes through. And that's all I care about.
sainraja
Member
If you really believe that a company like MS can manipulate its position in the market by doing that, where your implication is that their position is better than they are showing, how can you be in support of a company like that to buyout big publishers? I don't get it lol
None of what you wrote in your first two paragraphs is relevant. There's no need re-litigating how they ended up with their respective market shares. all that matters is the market situation at the moment, and outlook in the near to mid future.
The only thing a regulator should concern themselves with is whether or not the merger/acquisition provides a significant lessening in competition and causes significant harm to consumers.
DeepEnigma
Gold Member
Console wars.
mrmustard
Banned
More 'free' games on Game Pass.
poppabk
Cheeks Spread for Digital Only Future
Yeah I only game on PC so the console war stuff is irrelevant to me and I dont give a shit either way about exclusives as long as PC is not excluded. But anything that gets more stuff on gamepass that is new to me is good in my book.
adamsapple
Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
CMA will have their result out by or before the 26th. Once theirs is out that will be the clearest indicator of what the outcome will be.
Gamer_By_Proxy
Member
splattered
Member
I didn't say a scenario like that is "right" ... i think a company holding itself back while trying to navigate being under scrutiny sucks for its fans. Not saying it's actually happening, just a silly what if that will not come to pass.
Clintizzle
Lord of Edge.
Amen, Brother.
ChorizoPicozo
Member
i mean, this is what i have seen.
keep in mind that i am talking about Xbox Fans
no MS/Xbox itself.
James Sawyer Ford
Member
Do you think Microsoft is doing this out of charity?
Saving money in the short term isn't a free lunch.
feynoob
Banned
Gamepass will be the poison that kills xbox in the future.
As much as I like subscriptions service, there should be a limit to how much MS can invest in that service.
Xbox is slowly losing it's identity to xcloud and game pass.
The numbers of those Japan sales is depressing to look at. GG MS. You are killing your golden goose slowly.
As much as I like subscriptions service, there should be a limit to how much MS can invest in that service.
Xbox is slowly losing it's identity to xcloud and game pass.
The numbers of those Japan sales is depressing to look at. GG MS. You are killing your golden goose slowly.
DarkMage619
$MSFT
Who said it's charity? If Game pass stops being a good deal it will lose support. If it is saving customers money today why shouldn't a person use it? This deal will add many new games to the service that added value is good for the consumer.
ChorizoPicozo
Member
slowly?
they already lost their identity due to industry trends.
The mutiplayer-Co-op was innovative and "unique" back in the day. Now...is the norm, is not special enymore; i mean...i can have a multiplayer-Co-Op experience in my fricking phone.
feynoob
Banned
BR is the king these days.slowly?
they already lost their identity due to industry trends.
The mutiplayer-Co-op was innovative and "unique" back in the day. Now...is the norm, is not special enymore; i mean...i can have a multiplayer-Co-Op experience in my fricking phone.
splattered
Member
10 year dev cycle... Fable reboot?
bender
What time is it?
What golden goose is being killed, exactly?
feynoob
Banned
Their Xbox brand.
feynoob
Banned
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I bet it's Elder Scrolls. They've said that before.
bender
What time is it?
Xbox has never been a golden goose for Microsoft.
Elder Scrolls
PharaoTutAnchAmun
Member
Yeah Xbox has been bleeding money for MS. If xbox had not MS to pay the bills it was dead already...
ChorizoPicozo
Member
this is another thing i have seen. the idea of 'not paying for games' (let's be honest here folks) when people talk about this...they are talking about AAA games.
the affordability of accessing games has never being lower.
you can wait for a discount/promotion.
you can take advantage of giveaways like the Epic Store for example....and game pass as a concept is not even new. (you pay money then you get access to games). is just an evolution of previous services.
and there are millions of cheap and good games out there.
So, this promise that Phil did: "Day One First Party games" is the carrot in the stick; is the promise land.
and if the value of GP is tied to this idea/expectation.... things are going to get rough.
feynoob
Banned
The console production cost would have crushed Xbox. Look at what it did to ps3.
RickMasters
Member
Times are changing. These acquisitions will continue…. By both. I think the ABK acquisition has escalated things but it was going this way anyway. At the corporate level….. it's war. So yes. They will acquire more…. And more than likely continue to invest in the ones they have ( last time I checked they all got games in development and MS backing, so nothing has changed there) they will continue to do both. There is no bigger acquisition than ABK. They could just buy CDPK and a few other AAAs…. In addition to investing in what they already have. They can do both and they will be stronger for it. It's not about what fans want or neogaffers arguing the ' ethics' of it all….. the reality is this is all business. Corporate warefare. We have opinions and little else…. What we "want" is irrelevant. It's moot. So I wouldn't let it bother you too much if I were you.
RickMasters
Member
That could all change…..
bender
What time is it?
Zero chance.
Nothing1234
Banned
Azure….
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