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[ChorizoPicozo]

I have a theory, but I'll only elaborate if/when it comes to fruition.

We will know everything in just over a month's time.

i also have a theory/hypothesis is the same as yours?

 

[reksveks]

Microsoft as a company as acquired other big business prior to this (perhaps not in gaming), have they not?

Next biggest was linkedin at 26.2bn

 

[Roxkis_ii]

Now that the industry is doomed, what hobby are you all moving to? I was thinking of quilting.

I was thinking about picking up biking.

 

[GHG]

Don't keep us guessing, go on.

Not a chance. I'll leave the sharing of wacky theories to SenjutsuSage

I have shame, not everything that pops into my head needs to be said or written down.

Ok. MS told the regulators they plan to abandon Xbox after this gen and go 3rd party entirely.

Ok so... Sony failed to bribe them?

Nothing to do with money exchanging hands at all.

i also have a theory/hypothesis is the same as yours?

 

[Kvally]

Let's hope this doesn't end up like their Nokia purchase.

 

[BennyBlanco]

Kotick will be running Xbox inside 5 years.

This right here should be Sonys biggest fear. He’s been a meme for years but the guy is really good at his job.

 

[KingXtreme81]

Buy, buy, buy…that’s all the cunts at MS do. They cannot, and do not, develop anything. Just, buy, buy, buy. Then ruin, ruin and ruin.

I don’t give 2 shits about CoD, Diablo, or anything MS is buying. That does not change the fact that, MS is a do nothing bitch; they absorb, ruin, and that’s it.

If/when this deal goes through, it’s bad for gamers. That’s a fact. Period.

 

[Oddvintagechap]

This is going to be disastrous.

Because Sony’s response is going to have to be drastic.

And I can see Amazon seeing this as a buffet market.

And yes, Blizzard would be the one to leave MS after being bought.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

let's hope this doesn't end up like their Nokia purchase.

chances are high.

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

This right here should be Sonys biggest fear. He’s been a meme for years but the guy is really good at his job.

As far as I know, Kotick is 100% gone when this deal goes through. He gets his golden parachute.

But the whole sexual harassment scandal hasn't magically gone away. He just wanted an exit that included a massive payout like the greedy bastard he is. Mission accomplished.

 

[kirby007]

looks at empty popcorn package

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

This right here should be Sonys biggest fear. He’s been a meme for years but the guy is really good at his job.

Do you even know what is the implication of that happening?

 

[splattered]

Why are people acting as if Sony has to respond with some sort of "megaton" purchase of their own?

And what happened to the strength of their own 1st party studios? Sony has games, Xbox does not... remember?

What would be the purpose of Sony buying a huge publisher (That they wouldn't really be able to afford) ?

Just to say "Hey! We can do this too!"

Sorry, i don't think Sony are that foolish.

 

[DrFigs]

But the whole sexual harassment scandal hasn't magically gone away

No one cares about this anymore

 

[bentanchorbolt]

Not a chance. I'll leave the sharing of wacky theories to SenjutsuSage

I have shame, not everything that pops into my head needs to be said or written down.




Nothing to do with money exchanging hands at all.

 

[SteelCurtain 59]

chances are high.

Ummm no

 

[splattered]

This is going to be disastrous.

Because Sony’s response is going to have to be drastic.

And I can see Amazon seeing this as a buffet market.

And yes, Blizzard would be the one to leave MS after being bought.

So you think Blizzard - who has been run by Ybarra, an ex-Xbox high level employee - are going to "leave" Microsoft post acquisition? Really?

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Why are people acting as if Sony has to respond with some sort of "megaton" purchase of their own?

despair, copium.

And what happened to the strength of their own 1st party studios? Sony has games, Xbox does not... remember?

despair, copium.

What would be the purpose of Sony buying a huge publisher (That they wouldn't really be able to afford) ?

Just to say "Hey! We can do this too!"

Sorry, i don't think Sony are that foolish.

yep. as i said early. Sony could be put in a position in which the HAVE to buy a publisher.

I dont think that would the smarter move.

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

Why are people acting as if Sony has to respond with some sort of "megaton" purchase of their own?

And what happened to the strength of their own 1st party studios? Sony has games, Xbox does not... remember?

What would be the purpose of Sony buying a huge publisher (That they wouldn't really be able to afford) ?

Just to say "Hey! We can do this too!"

Sorry, i don't think Sony are that foolish.

They don't HAVE to. But they likely will because the shareholders will expect one to protect their business. I think it's highly likely there's a few big acquisitions now. They won't be anywhere near Activision (mathematically that's impossible anyways since no one else is nearly as big as them, absent Nintendo). But something to the tune of Square/Capcom? Yeah, wouldn't surprise me.

No one cares about this anymore

Microsoft publicly shamed Activision before this deal went through and is one of the most woke companies out there. You think Phil is going to forget about that whole thing and let Kotick come over and take his job when the entire executive leadership team proudly displays their He/She/They/Thems?

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Ummm no

Don't you think a lot of people are going the be laid off?

 

[BennyBlanco]

As far as I know, Kotick is 100% gone when this deal goes through. He gets his golden parachute.

But the whole sexual harassment scandal hasn't magically gone away. He just wanted an exit that included a massive payout like the greedy bastard he is. Mission accomplished

He already said if the deal doesn’t go through he’s staying. He’s gonna get his golden parachute regardless. I think they will have to weigh the damage of 100 kotaku and polygon articles vs competent activision execs turning Xbox into a well oiled machine.

 

[lh032]

Jimbo....give me miracle.

ANNOUNCE TAKE TWO ACQUISITION TOMORROW, bundle with CAPCOM AND SQUARE ENIX.

 

[Dick Jones]

Because the shareholders will expect one to protect their business. I think it's highly likely there's a few big acquisitions now. They won't be anywhere near Activision (mathematically that's impossible anyways since no one else is nearly as big as them, absent Nintendo). But something to the tune of Square/Capcom? Yeah, wouldn't surprise me.



Microsoft publicly shamed Activision before this deal went through and is one of the most woke companies out there. You think Phil is going to forget about that whole thing and let Kotick come over and take his job when the entire executive leadership team proudly displays their He/She/They/Thems?

Kotick will sexually assault his way to the top job. He is a shark and he is up against the likes of Major Nelson, Matt Booty and Aaron Greenberg. He will skewer those failures

 

[DrFigs]

Because the shareholders will expect one to protect their business. I think it's highly likely there's a few big acquisitions now. They won't be anywhere near Activision (mathematically that's impossible anyways since no one else is nearly as big as them, absent Nintendo). But something to the tune of Square/Capcom? Yeah, wouldn't surprise me.



Microsoft publicly shamed Activision before this deal went through and is one of the most woke companies out there. You think Phil is going to forget about that whole thing and let Kotick come over and take his job when the entire executive leadership team proudly displays their He/She/They/Thems?

when you put it that way, i think you're right

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

He already said if the deal doesn’t go through he’s staying. He’s gonna get his golden parachute regardless. I think they will have to weigh the damage of 100 kotaku and polygon articles vs competent activision execs turning Xbox into a well oiled machine.

Right. IF THE DEAL DOESN'T GO through he's staying at Activision.

But if it goes through now, he's 100% gone. It's Microsoft's call to make, not his, and it would be a massive about face on Kotick to allow him to come back, the demon who allowed employees to get harassed under his watch that Phil said was "unacceptable"

 

[reksveks]

Let's hope this doesn't end up like their Nokia purchase.

People need to look at the market share that Nokia had going into the windows phone stage and then being acquired. They were dying as soon as they decided to not use android but even android may not have been enough (See HTC and Motorola). Think it's alot harder to fuck ABK up.

 

[splattered]

They don't HAVE to. But they likely will because the shareholders will expect one to protect their business. I think it's highly likely there's a few big acquisitions now. They won't be anywhere near Activision (mathematically that's impossible anyways since no one else is nearly as big as them, absent Nintendo). But something to the tune of Square/Capcom? Yeah, wouldn't surprise me.



Microsoft publicly shamed Activision before this deal went through and is one of the most woke companies out there. You think Phil is going to forget about that whole thing and let Kotick come over and take his job when the entire executive leadership team proudly displays their He/She/They/Thems?

Yeah i've thought for a while that it was only a matter of time until Sony purchases Square... it feels like the stars have been moving into alignment on this for a while. But i DON'T think it's in any way a response to Activision, i think it's something Sony have just been quietly working on for a while now. Wouldn't surprise me at all.

 

[SteelCurtain 59]

Don't you think a lot of people are going the be laid off?

I mean probably some but I thought the Nokia comparison was in regards to it being a failure and waste of money, not in regards to potential layoffs so I may have misunderstood

 

[Roxkis_ii]

Let's hope this doesn't end up like their Nokia purchase.

I was just going to say.

I wonder who will last longer under Microsoft.

 

[Dick Jones]

Jimbo....give me miracle.

ANNOUNCE TAKE TWO ACQUISITION TOMORROW, bundle with CAPCOM AND SQUARE ENIX.

Sony: we have acquired Capcom.........'s IP Deep Down and Take Two.......'s IP Agent. Goodbye Volcano High will be free to PS+ Extra members in June

 

[DeepEnigma]

FT article linked in tweet. Two lawyers say this is a very unusual move by the CMA.

One leading antitrust lawyer said: “This is a very unusual development. In CMA-era cases, there has only been one other occurrence of ‘updated’ provisional findings that I’m aware of.” “

This is extremely unusual,” said an ex-CMA lawyer. “Restating your provisional findings is something you would rather die than do.”

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

Yeah i've thought for a while that it was only a matter of time until Sony purchases Square... it feels like the stars have been moving into alignment on this for a while. But i DON'T think it's in any way a response to Activision, i think it's something Sony have just been quietly working on for a while now. Wouldn't surprise me at all.

Well, IMHO, Buying Square is a waste of money.

If the Activision deal got blocked, Sony wouldn't pull that card at all because there's no need. Now? There's somewhat of a "need", even if it's entirely superficial and optically driven

 

[ulantan]

Why are people acting as if Sony has to respond with some sort of "megaton" purchase of their own?

And what happened to the strength of their own 1st party studios? Sony has games, Xbox does not... remember?

What would be the purpose of Sony buying a huge publisher (That they wouldn't really be able to afford) ?

Just to say "Hey! We can do this too!"

Sorry, i don't think Sony are that foolish.

Microsoft has been given the green light to keep going they would be making defensive buys

 

[kirby007]

Why would Sony buy SE? its not like in the HD console space they have the monopoly on their games

 

[Heisenberg007]

Why are people acting as if Sony has to respond with some sort of "megaton" purchase of their own?

And what happened to the strength of their own 1st party studios? Sony has games, Xbox does not... remember?

What would be the purpose of Sony buying a huge publisher (That they wouldn't really be able to afford) ?

Just to say "Hey! We can do this too!"

Sorry, i don't think Sony are that foolish.

I still don't think Sony will make an impulse buy. They are more strategic with their decisions in this regard.

Having said that, they are now at a serious disadvantage.

Nobody is denying their first-party prowess, but look at the studio count difference now: PlayStation Studios (19) vs. Xbox Game Studios (33)

They will have to increase their first-party portfolio. Otherwise, Xbox would be releasing almost 2x more games than PlayStation Studios every year (assuming they sort their management stuff).

Buying a publisher with 6-7 active studios will be the quickest fix.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

I mean probably some but I thought the Nokia comparison was in regards to it being a failure and waste of money, not in regards to potential layoffs so I may have misunderstood

oh. maybe not that kind of a failure but more like having underwhelming results. Yes, that is quite likely.

 

[GHG]

Jimbo....give me miracle.

ANNOUNCE TAKE TWO ACQUISITION TOMORROW, bundle with CAPCOM AND SQUARE ENIX.

 

[SteelCurtain 59]

oh. maybe not that kind of a failure but more like having underwhelming results. Yes, that is quite likely.

Agree to disagree, I think it's going to be a huge financial success for xbox

 

[Ozriel]

I firmly believe this btw.

Kotick is the biggest winner here and will devour Spencer and co within 3-5 years imo.

Nobody is going to take Kotick with all his baggage and make him an EVP at Microsoft.

Buy, buy, buy…that’s all the cunts at MS do. They cannot, and do not, develop anything. Just, buy, buy, buy. Then ruin, ruin and ruin.

I don’t give 2 shits about CoD, Diablo, or anything MS is buying. That does not change the fact that, MS is a do nothing bitch; they absorb, ruin, and that’s it.

If/when this deal goes through, it’s bad for gamers. That’s a fact. Period.

It’s excellent for me.
Xbox gets more competitive, clear commitment to remaining in the console race for a long time to come and provides more day one content for Gamepass.

 

[Kvally]

People need to look at the market share that Nokia had going into the windows phone stage and then being acquired. They were dying as soon as they decided to not use android but even android may not have been enough (See HTC and Motorola). Think it's alot harder to fuck ABK up.

This is true. I think they will be fine. The number one thing they wanted was King for a mobile gaming dent in the industry, and that is a self money maker. Followed by COD, which is a self money maker. And they did fine with their $2.5 billion purchase of Mojang.

 

[SteelCurtain 59]

Microsoft will have a super easy pr win by kicking out kotick and fixing the toxic culture at Activision, there's basically no way they'd be stupid enough to keep him around long, let alone promote him

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Agree to disagree, I think it's going to be a huge financial success for xbox

compared to their current status, absolutely. but not for MS's expectations.

 

[Bumblebeetuna]

Next crazy conspiracy will be that MS paid the CMA off.

 

[DrFigs]

I don't think Sony would have to acquire something as large as Take 2, mostly because it would be irresponsible for the debt/financing they'd have to take on. But I think they do need to be more aggressive.

 

[DeepEnigma]

Microsoft will have a super easy pr win by kicking out kotick and fixing the toxic culture at Activision, there's basically no way they'd be stupid enough to keep him around long, let alone promote him

Kotick would have stipulations in the agreed contract of the sale. And that is a heavy payday at the very least.

The man is far from stupid. He would not set himself up to be "escorted out by security."

 

[Three]

The only way it would make any sense is if GP subs hit Netflix levels around 200 million. Otherwise they just don't gain anything from it.

Not really, unlike netflix the influx of mtx from it becoming available to a smaller base will allow them to cover it. You raise GP prices by $3.50 a month right now even on 25M users you've covered it. Come 2025 with a likely bigger base (what's the projection 40M?) you can cover the biggest game in the industry with almost a negligible increase. Smaller games out there wouldn't be a problem at all.

What they want is MS gaming division to be fully self-sufficient during this long decade of growth / cloud transition. They're fine letting PS gamers buy COD. There are lots of other games to play and they don't want to do a single thing to disrupt players who enjoy buying that every year. It's just not going to happen.

And after all this public scrutiny, it's just virtually impossible. Meet you back here in 2033 for the "I told you so."

Come 2033 I think game sales would be almost nonexistent and it would depend entirely on the f2p and subscription landscape. When you see him I'm willing to bet it won't be to say I told you so.

 

[splattered]

Microsoft has been given the green light to keep going they would be making defensive buys

Sorry but Sony aren't as flush with cash as Microsoft is, if they just went out and tried to buy some big time publishers "in defense" it would eat into their own 1st party budget which may be difficult to recover from. I don't think Sony are foolish enough to take that sort of risk. They will probably buy up some smaller developers, but i just don't see them spending money they need for their own 1st party output. They said themselves revenue from COD marketing draw helps fund their own 1st party development... you think they're all of a sudden going to magically have money to gobble up someone large "in defense" ? Naw not very likely.

 

[Kilau]

Microsoft will have a super easy pr win by kicking out kotick and fixing the toxic culture at Activision, there's basically no way they'd be stupid enough to keep him around long, let alone promote him

Except it will just be a giant golden parachute but still a PR win.

 

[GHG]

Next crazy conspiracy will be that MS paid the CMA off.

It's not as bad as threatening military action against the UK, I'll give you that.

 

[KungFucius]

But I thought the CMA couldn't change their (provisional) decision and MS was wasting millions trying to see this through.

From the FT.




So, basically, CMA believes that Microsoft is now unwilling to withold CoD because it would "cost Microsoft too much money". That's a pretty big blind faith statement from a company valued at $2T and can afford much more massive "losses" to usher in long term objectives. And has already spent billions on the Xbox project with much lesser ROI than other divisions. I am not suggesting any conspiracy, but their reversal is not only odd, it is EXTREMELY rare. I don't know how compelling that data truly is.

They are a publicly traded company. They can't just throw billions in profit out the window on some hair brained notion that it will win them enough market share and not expect some shareholders to flip out and cause a lot of grief. The fact that they are valued so high, does not mean they can blow money, it actually means they have more shareholders who they are obligated not to fuck over with some childish strategy that only PlayStation fanatics think makes any sense at all. The data probably was that they have deals in place to put COD on more platforms meaning it would be even more financially irresponsible to make it an exclusive.