Microsoft completes $69bn takeover of Call of Duty-maker Activision Blizzard
Microsoft completes $69bn takeover of Call of Duty-maker Activision Blizzard::It comes after the UK approved the $69bn takeover of Activision Blizzard, which makes Call of Duty.
Probably paid for with the money they made not paying $29B in taxes over the last 20 years.
We ain’t even playing the game with the same rules and they don’t even need to pretend anymore.
Well hlf of it was used for that the rest came out of the couch cushions at Mr Gates summer retreat.
I don't know, maybe I should be angry or something. But Activision/Blizzard have been pretty shitty for a while now. This will just be more of the same and more of me continueing to not buying their games.
I grew up on Blizzard and Activision games, but the good feelings and nostalgia wore off when they started treating beloved franchises like DLC piggy banks.
Market consolidation 🥰🥰🥰🥰
"more choices" per the new CEO. Speech has absolutely been neutered by corporations in the last 30 years. Literally the opposite. "Product enhancements" announced by an airline, everyone starts looking for what is worse.
Whattttt. I love AOL-Time-Warner-Pepsico-Viacom-Halliburton-Skynet-Toyota-Trader-Joe's.
Looking forward to see how this will improve the quality of Microsoft-Activision-Blizzard-EA-Ubisoft's games and those of the competito- oh, never mind. None left.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
After the competition watchdog blocked the takeover earlier this year, Microsoft's president Brad Smith hit out at the CMA's decision, which it said was "bad for Britain" and contradicted "the ambitions of the UK to become an attractive country to build technology businesses".
But the CMA's Ms Cardell said with the sale of Activision's cloud streaming rights to Ubisoft, which makes Assassin's Creed, "we've made sure Microsoft can't have a stranglehold over this important and rapidly developing market".
Under the restructured agreement, Microsoft has agreed to transfer the rights to stream Activision games from the cloud to Ubisoft for 15 years outside the European Economic Area (EEA).
The deal with Activision also means Microsoft will own its studio solely purposed for mobile games, with hopes of expanding on the successes of titles such as Candy Crush.
The takeover further cements Microsoft as a video game giant and could catapult it ahead of Nintendo to become the third-biggest player in the industry behind Sony, the owner of the PlayStation console, and market leader Tencent.
"[It will lead to] more choice, more innovation, better value and improved gaming experiences and a healthy, competitive market," said Ms Stewart, who is also a former head of ICT at the Cabinet Office government department.
The original article contains 932 words, the summary contains 209 words. Saved 78%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!
So let me make sure I’m reading this right. They let the deal go through because Microsoft gave Ubisoft the cloud streaming right to activation for the next 15 years. The argument being this deal will stop Microsoft from becoming a monopoly due to cloud gamings speculative importance in markets future.
Call me crazy but cloud gamings gonna take at least 15 years to be an important part of the market if it ever gets there in the first place. I can’t tell if regulators are stupid or wholly corrupt.
RIP video games
ActiBlizz haven't made anything I've been interested in for some time. MS got some amazingly shitty games out of Bethesda tho, Redfall and Starfield are just case studies in despising your audience.
I'm not interested in their games either, my issue with it is that a lot of people are, and MS is trying their hardest to get a monopoly in the industry and/or turn everything into streaming-only subscription crap
It's never been a better time to be a gamer. Fantastic games are a dime a dozen and consoles have never been nearly as powerful for low end games. It's a fantastic time to be gaming.
Except Microsoft is building up a monopoly on gaming, buying what they can, consolidating its properties so they can then transition to a streaming-only model where nobody owns anything (I know you don't technically "own" the games you buy either but at least you can have them on physical media to keep, back up or sell) and the only way to play anything is to pay a monthly subscription fee and to use only what Microsoft allows you to use (i.e. no more Linux gaming)
Eh, I’m of the opinion when the old giants get stale or acquired into a grand corporate strategy new studios will spring up to fill the vacancy in the market.
Finally. Thank God that's over and I can get my free Diablo soon. Gamepass is fantastic!
Not sure why you’re being downvoted. You do you I guess.
I will say it’s not technically free, game pass has a fee, ergo you’re paying for it.
I don’t know enough, nor care enough to weigh in on the implications of this deal.
I play Minecraft Java and Factorio and really am not interested in any other games as I found these two be be good for what I enjoy and they don’t ask me for more money all the time.
Ew
I'm missing the "haha funny number" comments from Reddit :(
haha funny number
What a shit time to be a gamer. Fuck Microsoft and fuck regulators for allowing this
Activision already ruined blizzard and is/was a shit company. Anyone buying their games still is a sucker who loves being ripped off. Nothing of value was lost here.
IDKY you're getting down votes. It's true. Nothing they've done for a while now is worth the time or money.
The regulators fought it in court. Blame the judge.
So it's the judge biased or corrupt? Or maybe it's the garbage laws and politicians?
Activision waa such a piece of shit, I m actually very excited for this. They shitcanned Bobby too. It can only get better.
This is getting closer and closer to a monopoly. It won't end well
Lmaoooooo that's absurd. Y'all just want to be angry. It's a fantastic time to be a gamer.
RE4, TotK, Hifi rush, street fighter, mk1, Diablo, starfield, armored core, lies of p, bg3, octopath 2, Hogwarts , pikeman, amnesia , like a dragon, fire emblem, age of wonders, assassin's Creed, attic heart, blasphemous 2, company of heroes, darkest dungeon 2, dredge, Forza, immortals of avium , lords of the fallen, total war, Spider-Man in a few days, remnant, survivor, system shock, etc.
I'm sure I missed quite a few good games and that's 23 only.
Of your list, while there are multiple good games, I’m still waiting for the next great game that I can enjoy.