Phil Spencer urges UK regulator to clear Activision deal

Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Gaming, publicly appealed to the United Kingdom’s competition regulator to approve Microsoft’s planned acquisition of Activision Blizzard, arguing the deal would benefit players and expand access to popular franchises.

UK regulator cites competition concerns

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has said the takeover could “substantially reduce competition” across consoles, multi-game subscription services and cloud gaming. The CMA intends to open a Phase 2 investigation to examine whether Microsoft gaining control of franchises such as Call of Duty and World of Warcraft could harm rivals PlayStation and Nintendo.

Spencer promises Call of Duty parity on PlayStation

Montage of major Activision Blizzard game franchises that would come under Microsoft — Wide lineup of Activision Blizzard games that would become part of Microsoft’s portfolio. (Image: Reprodução/Microsoft/Activision Blizzard)

In a post on the Microsoft blog, Spencer addressed the CMA’s concern that the acquisition might remove franchises like Call of Duty from platforms where they are currently available. He reiterated Microsoft’s commitment to making future Call of Duty titles available on PlayStation on the same day they launch elsewhere.

Microsoft frames acquisition as consumer-focused

Spencer outlined how Microsoft plans to make games including Overwatch, Diablo and Call of Duty available through Game Pass, the company’s subscription and cloud-streaming service. He said adding those titles would broaden the Game Pass catalog and grow the player communities for those games.

He highlighted Game Pass Ultimate’s cloud streaming as a way to increase access for players on mobile devices and tablets, writing that subscription services like Game Pass “make games more accessible and help players around the world find their next favorite game,” and that Game Pass “enables developers to bring more games to more players, not fewer.”