Microsoft, in its efforts to secure regulatory approval for its $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, is currently facing the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in court. The FTC is seeking to impose an injunction preventing Microsoft and Activision from finalizing a deal before a crucial trial scheduled for August, which will determine whether the FTC has a strong antitrust case.
Legal documents reveal interesting information about the console war
While the arguments presented in this case are promising, legal documents have already revealed some fascinating information. Microsoft has stated that it plans to release Bethesda’s future games on PlayStation. For his part, PlayStation’s Jim Ryan said the company would not share details of the PS6 with Activision if it were acquired by Microsoft.
Exploring further the documents filed with the court, Microsoft bluntly admitted that ” Xbox lost the console war” acknowledging that it ” consistently ranked third behind Sony and Nintendo” . According to Microsoft, its market share of console sales in 2021 was 16% (although Sony and Nintendo’s shares are masked).
Microsoft says Xbox has “lost the console wars.” Ahead of the FTC case today, Microsoft is keen to show Xbox is in third place. Microsoft reveals Xbox had 16 percent share of console sales in 2021 and 21 percent of the console install base https://t.co/4PrN7uQwvS pic.twitter.com/KKyQcTXZqp
– Tom Warren (@tomwarren) June 22, 2023
In terms of total number of consoles installed, the Xbox represents 21. However, it is important to note that these figures do not tell the whole story, because when you take into account elements such as PC game sales and Game PassXbox revenues are comparable to those of Nintendo, although they still lag behind those of Sony.
With regard to consoles, the documents also reveal that the 10-year agreement proposed by Microsoft for Call of Duty series on the PlayStation 6. Microsoft anticipates that the next generation of consoles will begin in 2028.
” This duration would in any case extend beyond the period scheduled for the launch of the next generation of consoles (in 2028). Thus, Call of Duty will be released on subsequent PlayStation consoles if any of them are released during the term of the agreement. The agreement also guarantees that Call of Duty console games will be offered on PlayStation at parity with Xbox.” .