Call of Duty fans who’ve been worried what Microsoft’s pending $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard means for the future of that franchise on PlayStation can breathe easy. That series and other popular Activision Blizzard games won’t be exclusive to Xbox — even after Sony’s existing agreements with the publisher expire.
“Microsoft will continue to make Call of Duty and other popular Activision Blizzard titles available on PlayStation through the term of any existing agreement with Activision,” Microsoft president Brad Smith wrote in a blog post. “And we have committed to Sony that we will also make them available on PlayStation beyond the existing agreement and into the future so that Sony fans can continue to enjoy the games they love. We are also interested in taking similar steps to support Nintendo’s successful platform. We believe this is the right thing for the industry, for gamers and for our business.”
According to Bloomberg, Sony struck a deal with Activision Blizzard before the blockbuster merger was announced to bring the next two mainline Call of Duty games and a sequel to Warzone to PlayStation. Until now, it was unclear whether subsequent Call of Duty games would be released on PlayStation or if Microsoft planned to keep them on Xbox and PC only.
Smith made the announcement while revealing a set of Open App Store Principles that Microsoft is establishing for Windows and future gaming marketplaces it’s building for games. He wrote that the company is bringing in the measures as it seeks regulatory approval for the Activision Blizzard deal and as governments “move forward with new laws to promote competition in app markets and beyond. We want regulators and the public to know that as a company, Microsoft is committed to adapting to these new laws, and with these principles, we’re moving to do so.”
The Federal Trade Commission is reportedly reviewing the Microsoft-Activision Blizzard buyout rather than the Department of Justice (the FTC doesn’t comment on investigations). The deal could face more scrutiny than in would have from the DOJ. The FTC last year said it would take a more aggressive approach toward merger and acquisition investigations under chair Lina Khan, a noted critic of Big Tech.
Microsoft is establishing its new principles in line with app store legislation that jurisdictions such as the US, European Union, the Netherlands and the Republic of Korea are considering. Smith said that Microsoft’s tenets will “ensure we’re providing the best possible experience for creators and customers of all sizes.”
The Open App Store Principles are as follows:
Quality, Safety, Security & Privacy
1. We will enable all developers to access our app store as long as they meet reasonable and transparent standards for quality and safety.
2. We will continue to protect the consumers and gamers who use our app store, ensuring that developers meet our standards for security.
3. We will continue to respect the privacy of consumers in our app stores, giving them controls to manage their data and how it is used.
Accountability
4. We will hold our own apps to the same standards we hold competing apps.
5. We will not use any non-public information or data from our app store to compete with developers’ apps.
Fairness and Transparency
6. We will treat apps equally in our app store without unreasonable preferencing or ranking of our apps or our business partners’ apps over others.
7. We will be transparent about rules for promotion and marketing in our app store and apply these consistently and objectively.
Developer Choice
8. We will not require developers in our app store to use our payment system to process in-app payments.
9. We will not require developers in our app store to provide more favorable terms in our app store than in other app stores.
10. We will not disadvantage developers if they choose to use a payment processing system other than ours or if they offer different terms and conditions in other app stores.
11. We will not prevent developers from communicating directly with their customers through their apps for legitimate business purposes, such as pricing terms and product or service offerings.
Other commitments include enabling Windows users to have access to whichever app stores and third-party they like, and selection default apps for various purposes.
Smith said that, partly due to app store legislation not being written specifically for gaming consoles, the principles won’t all apply to Xbox in the immediate future. Still, as of today, “we will move forward to apply Principles 1 through 7 to the store on the Xbox console,” Smith wrote. “We’re committed to closing the gap on the remaining principles over time.”
Developing…
Source: Engadget – Microsoft promises to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation