Microsoft has signed a new agreement with another cloud gaming provider, less than a day after announcing its 10-year deal with Ukraine-based cloud gaming platform Boosteroid. The announcement comes at a time when the tech giant is increasingly looking to garner support from the industry over its Activision Blizzard acquisition. This new deal marks Microsoft’s latest attempt at winning the regulators’ favor.
The company's pending Activision Blizzard acquisition has been routinely making the headlines in recent times, mostly due to regulatory pressure and heavy opposition from rival Sony. One of the biggest arguments against the deal has been Microsoft's potential to monopolize the gaming market in specific areas, particularly with regard to massively popular franchises like Call of Duty. Sony has actively voiced its concern over how a Microsoft-owned Activision could harm competition when it comes to Call of Duty and other IPs, even drawing comparisons to the Xbox maker's Bethesda purchase and its post-acquisition phase. So, it may not be surprising to see the tech giant campaigning to make its case, with Microsoft going so far as to publish full-page adverts about its Activision deal.
But newspaper adverts are only a minor part of Microsoft's strategy, as a larger effort is invested towards signing long-term exclusive partnerships with gaming companies. Microsoft's latest Call of Duty-related gaming deal signs up Japanese cloud gaming provider Ubitus, where Xbox PC games and Activision titles are scheduled to make their way to the platform. Similar to Microsoft's previous deals with Nvidia, Nintendo, and Boosteroid, the agreement is a 10-year partnership that will come into effect after the approval of the Activision purchase. While neither company has yet to offer in-depth details on the agreement itself, Ubitus mentions that bringing the Xbox PC games to the platform will expand its own library to over 1,000 titles.
While the company has offered Sony a similar long-term deal, the PlayStation maker has outright refused such an arrangement, even as Microsoft reportedly offered to let Sony put Call of Duty on PS Plus on day one. As of now, the tensions between both companies probably won't ease anytime soon, and those hoping for a Microsoft - Sony deal might have to wait a little longer. Regardless, the Xbox maker will likely continue to form more partnerships with other gaming platforms and providers as it awaits the go-ahead from regulatory bodies.
Although it's currently unclear what the fate of the Activision buyout will be, some already expect things to go Microsoft's way. Recently, one report indicated that the EU is set to approve the Microsoft Activision Blizzard acquisition. Of course, this doesn't necessarily mean other bodies will follow suit, though it hints at how the situation may progress over the coming months.