Brad Smith, President and Vice Chair of Microsoft, has said in an interview that Activision Blizzard has accused Sony for trying to “protect its two-decade dominance in video games.” Smith also claims that PlayStation has a “70/30” market share compared to Xbox on a global scale, and that these figures are even stronger for Sony in Europe and Japan.
These remarks were made during a conference to the media in defense of the Microsoft-Activision merger before the company had to convince EU regulators to approve the acquisition.
Microsoft believes Call of Duty being on Nvidia and Switch will satisfy regulators
Smith suggests that the Microsoft-Activision deal would actually increase competition given Sony’s market share in gaming, as reported by GamesIndustry.biz:
Think about the market in Europe. It is a market where Sony has an 80% share. Globally, it is about 70/30. In Japan, it is 96/4. These numbers have been remarkably steady for two decades. Even last year, when there were issues with Sony’s supply chain, they came back strong.
This statement goes against the testimony of three third-party companies that said the Microsoft Activision deal would have a “negative impact” on competition.
Smith also says the deal to bring Call of Duty, along with Xbox games, to Nintendo Switch and Nvidia’s GeForce Now will open the series “to 150 million more people who don’t get it today.”
While Microsoft and Sony have not agreed to a resolution yet, Smith said he had an envelope in his pocket with a possible deal that Sony will accept. We have had no word yet if Sony has seen or accepted this supposed deal.
