Microsoft Claims Sony Pays Developers 'Blocking Rights' To Keep Games Off Xbox Game Pass

In a lengthy document submitted to the Brazilian government as part of its investigation into Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Microsoft has claimed Sony pays developers "blocking rights" to prevent games from appearing on Xbox Game Pass. From a report: The accusation appears in a 27-page rebuttal of Sony's recent objections to Microsoft's Activision Blizzard buyout, made to Brazil's Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE) as part of its investigation. Much of Sony's argument had focused on Call of Duty - which it claimed had "no rival" and was "so popular that it influences users' choice of console" -- with the PlayStation maker suggesting, among other things, that the inclusion of Call of Duty on Microsoft's Game Pass service would hamper its ability to compete.

Microsoft's response is as wide-ranging as Sony's initial objections, touching on everything from the fact it has previously managed to grow Game Pass without Activision Blizzard's titles -- suggesting Call of Duty mightn't be quite as "essential" as Sony claims -- to a reiteration of its assurances that it won't be making Call of Duty an Xbox console exclusive. It's here that Microsoft takes a swipe at Sony, pointing out (as per a Google-translated version of its filing) that for all its concerns around exclusivity, "the use of exclusive arrangements has been at the heart of Sony's strategy to strengthen its presence in the gaming industry." Microsoft says Sony's concerns are "incoherent", given that, by virtue of PlayStation's dominant market share, the company is a leader in the distribution of digital games - especially when, as Microsoft claims, Sony has actively hampered the growth of Game Pass by paying for "'blocking rights' to prevent developers from adding content to Game Pass and other competing subscription services." Further reading: Microsoft Justifies Activision Blizzard's $69 Billion Acquisition By Telling Regulator Call of Duty Publisher Doesn't Release 'Unique' Games.

Microsoft complaining about antitrust...

[Narcocide]

... meanwhile in the weather, temperatures in Hell are plummeting.

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[Train0987]

Seems like they're specifically complaining about exclusive titles. Didn't Microsoft pretty much invent the concept of exclusive titles?

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[Narcocide]

Well, no it was Nintendo actually but Windows 95 would never have gotten off the ground without exclusive titles.

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[jacks smirking reven]

Looking back, the way Nintendo curated access to the platform in the 80's with the "Nintendo Seal of Approval" really puts Sony and microsoft to shame with their efforts. I believe Nintendo even had exclusive control of manufacturing over the cartridges themselves (except for pesky Tengen and a couple other holdouts).

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[Narcocide]

It worked pretty well but you never caught Nintendo being like "Boo hoo, Sega is withholding their best titles from our platform!"

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[DarkRookie2]

I wanna say Atari or Coleco-vision. IIRC some old console maker did it first.
Nintendo standardize the practice with the "Seal of Approval" which is whole can of worms.

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[Joce640k]

Seems like they're specifically complaining about exclusive titles. Didn't Microsoft pretty much invent the concept of exclusive titles?

Can I play Halo on Playstation...?

Halo 2 on PS1

[tepples]

I've played Halo 2 on an original PlayStation and Halo 5 on a Dreamcast. Photo evidence [pineight.com]

(This isn't Microsoft's Halo 2 (2004) for Xbox. Microsoft has reappropriated Nine Inch Nails' release designations [nin.wiki] for game titles.)

Pretty sure

[DarkRookie2]

I am pretty sure that is why the PlayStation is still around. They pay people to make games for it.

Microsoft BOUGHT BUNGIE for Halo exclusivity

[Kremmy]

They're really dancing around that exclusivity word when they literally buy companies to stop them from working for other companies.

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[Asynchronously]

The ironing is delicious!

When Sony purchased Bungie they said that any future games would be cross platform. When MS bought Bethesda they said that future games would be MS platforms only.

OEM licensing of Windows

[TWX]

After the way Microsoft set up agreements with computer OEMs to require a Windows license with every PC sold regardless of if the customer wanted Windows or not, Microsoft can go perform impossible acts of anatomy upon itself.

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[Tablizer]

> Microsoft can go perform impossible acts of anatomy upon itself.

Windows already simulates that.

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[DarkRookie2]

Microsoft can go perform impossible acts of anatomy upon itself.

With the amount of money they have, I don't believe this is correct.

Look at the bright side

[Opportunist]

At least they're not telling stores that their prices get worse when they dare to offer your product.

Perhaps Sony have the right idea

[pereOlthwaite]

Somewhere around 1830, British publishing switched over to a subscription-based circulating library paradigm. Took the Victorians about sixty years to realise that this had been a terrible idea – that in all that time, only the Americans messrs Mark Twain and Henry James had produced anything in the way of English-language writing worth a damn.

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[tlhIngan]

Except Sony has Playstation Plus, which is their own take on Game Pass now.

And by blocking rights, I believe it's more akin to saying the game can be on Playstaiton Plus, but not Game Pass, but you can buy the game on Xbox if you wanted.

It's not console exclusivity, it's subscription exclusivity. So it's on Game Pass, but not Playstation Plus, but you can buy the game for both Xbox and Playstation if you wanted (e.g., you don't subscribe), and vice versa.

Perhaps it just means Microsoft needs to block Sony f

Oh, exclusivity is a problem, now?

[zarmanto]

Back when MS first started foraging into the gaming market, they bought this little bity gaming company that barely anyone had heard of -- except for Mac users. That company had had some pretty decent success in the largely underserved Mac gaming arena, and was preparing to release a multi-platform juggernaut, planned to be released on the Mac first and various consoles thereafter. Bungie never ended up releasing that Mac port of Halo... because when MS purchased them, Halo was promptly rolled into their Xbox portfolio, and ports to all other systems abruptly vanished into the bitbucket.

So you see, MS plays the exclusivity card, too, when it suits them. Complaining about their biggest rival using those same tactics against them sounds awfully hollow, to anybody who knows just a tiny bit about gaming history.

hey microsoft

[renegade600]

remember what you did in the past with os2 and dr dos???? If what you are saying is true, you started it.

Game Interoperability - do any exist

[MrKaos]

Are there *any* games that interoperate across platforms? Seems dumb that consumers could buy the same game on either platform and still not be able to play it together.

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[drinkypoo]

Are there *any* games that interoperate across platforms?

found this in about thirty seconds [wikipedia.org], had to skim a couple of articles to figure out what to search for.

I really should get paid to find things for people on the internet.

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[MrKaos]

Thanks!

I really should get paid to find things for people on the internet.

What would you call it? DrinkySearch, PooFind ;)

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[drinkypoo]

GetYourDrinkOn, obviously

Sounds like Expert S-ex Change

[tepples]

I really should get paid to find things for people on the internet.

What would you call it? DrinkySearch, PooFind ;)

The closest thing I can think of is how Experts-Exchange used to be set up. Previously, users could earn a subscription through answering enough unanswered questions.

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[malinkastrong]

As a game developer I think the most important thing for me is that a lot of people like my game, not how many people will pay money for it. Still, for my players it's not the gameplay that's most important. This is called a peer-to-peer exchange. Although when I started developing a game with a game development [ilogos.biz] company my expenses were paid off on kickstarter.