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Microsoft considered acquiring Bungie and Sega to bolster Xbox Game Pass, internal emails show
- Thread starter Thick Thighs Save Lives
- Start date
- News
James Sawyer Ford
Member
It’s easier to generate a list of studios Microsoft HASN'T tried to buy
And you think that Sony (which ended up buying Bungie and 6 more Studios) has no plans and has attempted acquisition agreements at those levels? Regulators don't look at what you tried to buy, they look at whether what you buy is going to cause harm to competition in the market...
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OmegaSupreme
advanced basic bitch
They tried to buy Nintendo too back in the day. They've been trying to buy the market since the beginning.
StealthGoblin
Banned
This is about to get spicy.
‘
“We (Microsoft) are in a very unique position to be able to go spend Sony out of business,” said Booty, referencing spending $2 billion or $3 billion in 2020 to avoid competitors getting ahead in content at a later date.
“It is practically impossible for anyone to start a new video streaming service at scale at this point,” said Booty, referencing competitors like Google, Amazon, and Sony. Booty described content as a moat and that only Sony could really compete with Game Pass:’
Christ alive. If the FTC bring that up that’ll take a sledgehammer to Microsoft in court.
harry mason 1989
Banned
Hopefully the cma will stop ms evil plan by blocking activision acquisition
Varteras
Member
Ask yourself why Sony suddenly started buying as many companies in 2 years as they did the previous 28 years. What happened before that? Think real hard.
Panajev2001a
GAF's Pleasant Genius
Thinking might be discouraged in astroturfing land
.
GHG
Member
Wow
I'm just wondering what will be revealed next in the booty files.
Thick Thighs Save Lives
NeoGAF's Physical Games Advocate Extraordinaire
Grubb yet again vindicated, btw.
ChuckeRearmed
Member
Not necessary. This info is from 2020, while alliance was announced in 2021 and ABK happened in 2022.
tmlDan
Member
Sony doesn't have the capital/intent for all these acquisitions. MS started the acquisition war and Sony was forced to retaliate.
Either way, this trial is not about Sony, it's about MS.
unless you like when companies buy everyone and destroy gaming franchises when they get too big too fast? Or you love when one company owns everything and charges you $30/mo for GP like how Netflix prices rose.
Pelta88
Member
They can't create success despite having more financial resources than any other company in the business on the planet.
Instead, they're trying to swallow every gaming publisher and studio just to get a pr win. This is worrying and should give any real gamer, pause for thought,
Instead, they're trying to swallow every gaming publisher and studio just to get a pr win. This is worrying and should give any real gamer, pause for thought,
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Varteras
Member
So what many have been saying for a long time may be true after all. Microsoft won't just spend any amount of money on anything. They actually have limits that even Sony can beat them at.
RoadHazard
Gold Member
They really do want to buy everyone. This has always been how MS has operated, they don't innovate their way to market leadership, they buy their way to domination.
Victor Omega
Member
I wonder what The other CEOs at Microsoft must feel about Phil and Xbox. When their all around their window shaped conference room, I'm sure the Azure CEO, Microsoft Word CEO, Outlook CEO and Bing CEO just look at phil like "wasting our money on hope and dreams"
(,metaphorically speaking. I think they called each of them CTOs, excluding Phil)
(,metaphorically speaking. I think they called each of them CTOs, excluding Phil)
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VAVA Mk2
Member
Harold Ryan would do it for enough money.
DrFigs
Member
damn even the Bing CEO is judging lol
VAVA Mk2
Member
Window shaped conference room...so a square or rectangle?
RoadHazard
Gold Member
I want to know what the Notepad CEO thinks of all this.
Panajev2001a
GAF's Pleasant Genius
“Spending Sony out of business” saves you from having to actually setup and run AAA publishers / devs well.
So the thought experiment of content starving the competition… Mmmh maybe not entirely a thought experiment
.Again… * honk *
Shifty1897
Member
Best post I've seen all week.
???? There is no need to change the narrative. It is not what was being discussed.
But hey, I don't think you mean that Sony began to acquire in view of the purchase of Zenimax by MS..... According to Sony's own information, the contacts to buy Bungie are prior to MS buying Zeni-Beth.
That you think Sony buying studios and Bungie is just a matter of reacting to MS is funny. As if the Sony acquisition rumors only started after the purchase of Zenimax by MS
I have not explained well. I was trying to say that the close relationship that exists today may be the result of those acquisition negotiations that ultimately did not take place. Not that there is a fund acquisition agreement waiting to be revealed....
FalsettoVibe
Member
Didn't they try to buy Square Enix at the same time? This plus Booty's email shows they are absolutely trying to choke other console manufacturers.
Hawking Radiation
Member
Xbox out here wanting to buy everything and everyone.
That doesn't sit right with me.
That doesn't sit right with me.
Thick Thighs Save Lives
NeoGAF's Physical Games Advocate Extraordinaire
Yo, I use that shite on daily basis so don't you be dissing the Notepad CEO!
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Varteras
Member
But hey, I don't think you mean that Sony began to acquire in view of the purchase of Zenimax by MS..... According to Sony's own information, the contacts to buy Bungie are prior to MS buying Zeni-Beth.
That you think Sony buying studios and Bungie is just a matter of reacting to MS is funny. As if the Sony acquisition rumors only started after the purchase of Zenimax by MS
All of their studio acquisitions and potential future ones? No. Do I believe that Sony accelerated and expanded plans when they saw Microsoft go after one major publisher, and then another? Yeah. If you don't believe that, I have a bridge to sell you.
Calls for Sony to buy major companies are a direct result of what Microsoft has been doing. It's not hypocritical to expect Sony to respond in kind.
RoadHazard
Gold Member
Yo, I use that shite on daily basis so don't you be dissing the Notepad CEO!
Oh, I'm not. Notepad is clean and purehearted. I love plain text editors.
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ChorizoPicozo
Member
too smol for Phil
ChuckeRearmed
Member
Oh that. Yeah, I agree that this relationship is probably the result of the acquisition talks. Arguably it is the most optimal way for both Sega and MSFT - Sega is using Azure, releases stuff in Game Pass later, releases stuff Day 1 on Xbox, marketing deals and so on. At the same time, MSFT does not need to deal with either multiplatform releases nor with trying to make IPs like SMT and Persona exclusive.
graywolf323
Member
you have to understand, it’s okay when Microsoft does it because GamePass
but it’s not okay for Sony to do it because not GamePass, nevermind the fact Microsoft is worth trillions (something like 20-25x what Sony is worth?)
nowhat
Member
Nah, I'm pretty sure it would have been ass.
...but in the case that some of you younguns don't know a classic, here's a song that'll accommodate for both:
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Varteras
Member
I'm curious why their other targets, outside of Bungie, never materialized. At least not yet. Did their other deals halt their originally planned moves, you think?
Nydius
Gold Member
This made me think of Palmer, Shinra’s Space Department chair, asking for more budget money in FF7.
Isn't Sega the only publisher on that list of internal targets?
I don't know about 'it's not OK'. This thread exists
Sony acquiring Activision would never have gotten off the ground, even if they had the money. Regulators would have nixed it based on their marketshare
Mobile Suit Gooch
Grundle: The Awakening
Only for Atlus.Sega's not worth much nowadays honestly..
I think the Bethesda deal probably stopped them trying for other studios for a while. They had to go through approval for the Bethesda deal between Q3 2020 and Q1 2021. And then in less than a year, they were already announcing the Activision deal which was an opportunistic play.
Ironically, the email confirms Mobile as a key acquisition driver even over console, but I suspect that's not what most here want to hear.
Varteras
Member
Yeah. If anything this information shows us that Microsoft does have limits on how much they'll spend on what companies. Being outbid by Sony on Bungie proves that much. Also, that Zenimax and Activision were much more likely opportunistic moments. That Microsoft's plans outside of them were, truthfully, much more subdued before both publishers came along with serious issues.
The Pleasure
Member
He sits content in the fact that more people use Notepad then Xbox.
XesqueVara
Member
Midnight Bliss
Member
Do it. Their next console could be called "Dreaming Studio" and the tagline could be "where dreams do come true".
Your avatar is your very own Sonic OC. The system is just a box with a hole in it. Sonic loves chili dogs so the games are shaped like one for the system.
Anytime a game is connected, the system says random ukresistance quotes and sometimes talks about blue skies in games while glitching out like it's losing its memory. Also it randomly screams and begs to be turned off.
Your avatar is your very own Sonic OC. The system is just a box with a hole in it. Sonic loves chili dogs so the games are shaped like one for the system.
Anytime a game is connected, the system says random ukresistance quotes and sometimes talks about blue skies in games while glitching out like it's losing its memory. Also it randomly screams and begs to be turned off.
Neo_game
Member
How did these guys get such high ranked position in Xbox, Microsoft ?
No wonder Microsoft has beeen struggling to win market share. If I was the CEO of Microsoft, I would get rid of these people and hire more deserving leaders, managers to come up with better solution to gain market share rather than suggestion me to sign blank cheque after blank cheque to compensate of their incompetency.
No wonder Microsoft has beeen struggling to win market share. If I was the CEO of Microsoft, I would get rid of these people and hire more deserving leaders, managers to come up with better solution to gain market share rather than suggestion me to sign blank cheque after blank cheque to compensate of their incompetency.