“Sony shares tank over 12% after Microsoft and Activision’s $68.7 billion tie-up plan”
January 19, 2022
“Sony shares fell more than 12% in Tokyo on Wednesday after Microsoft announced plans to buy Activision. Investors likely fear rising competition to Sony’s PlayStation division as well as the potential for Microsoft to pull some popular games from the Japanese entertainment giant’s platforms.
For some time, Sony has been ahead of Microsoft with its portfolio of first-party games, allowing it to stay ahead in the console wars. But should Microsoft close the acquisition of Activision, it will have a strong portfolio of hit games from the Call of Duty franchise to World of Warcraft…
“Whether or not Activision Blizzard’s content is progressively made exclusive to Xbox platforms and services, inclusion of new releases into Xbox Game Pass for several major games franchises, including Call of Duty, will undermine Sony’s third-party business. Sony has benefitted from the ability to negotiate timed exclusive content for Call of Duty but this is now under threat.”…”