TechEnvoke
The merging of Activision and Blizzard would be crucial.
Microsoft wants to give your phone a taste of the Xbox gaming store. According to The Verge, a business filing with the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has disclosed intentions to create a “next generation” Xbox shop that’s accessible on mobile devices in addition to consoles and computers. Unsurprisingly, the store would rely significantly on the Activision Blizzard merger’s projected content. More than half of Activision’s revenue comes from Call of Duty Mobile and King’s more lighthearted titles (think Candy Crush), which Microsoft claimed would help draw players to the new platform.
According to the corporation, the acquisition would increase Microsoft’s mobile gaming and advertising revenue. Additionally, it would provide “critical competence” for creating and promoting these titles.
The industry titan of software is aware of the difficulties. According to the filing, it will take a “significant shift” in customer behavior to entice them away from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. Microsoft claims that it would treat third-party programmed equally and offer options for in-app purchases in the Xbox mobile shop in accordance with its open app store policy.
Microsoft may not actually go through with the planned launch of the Xbox mobile gaming shop. Concerned that the Activision Blizzard acquisition would harm competition, particularly in console gaming, the CMA is conducting a thorough inquiry. Additionally, there isn’t a workable way to install a specific Xbox game shop on iPhones and iPads. Apple enforces use of the App Store, however Android users can sideload third-party stores. In order to offer Game Pass streaming through the browser, Microsoft had to struggle to get Xbox games onto the App Store. Microsoft may have to settle for pursuing Android gamers if antitrust cases are unable to compel Apple to open its platform.
The filing was done with a clear strategy in mind. The possibility of an Xbox mobile store should help Microsoft persuade UK regulators that the Activision Blizzard merger will protect or even enhance competition. However, organizations like the CMA might not view it in this way. The developer’s assurances to support competing platforms could not be enough to allay officials’ concerns that Microsoft’s future ownership of Call of Duty on console, cloud, and mobile would give the business too much power over the games industry.