Ms. Wilkinson also argued that it would be nonsensical for Microsoft to remove Call of Duty and other titles from other platforms, such as Sony’s PlayStation, because the company would miss out on a large chunk of its gaming revenue. She said Sony had become the “lead complainant” in the case and showed an email from Sony’s CEO, Jim Ryan, suggesting he didn’t really believe Microsoft would withhold Call of Duty.
The FTC, in another lawsuit, accused Meta, Facebook’s parent company, of cutting off emerging competitors when it bought Instagram and WhatsApp. On Wednesday, it sued Amazon over allegations that the company tricked users into signing up for its Prime subscription service. But the FTC has had setbacks: Earlier this year, the challenge for Meta’s purchase of a virtual reality start-up fell apart after a judge refused to stop the deal.
The FTC initially challenged Microsoft’s bid for Activision in an internal court. But that court does not have the legal authority to stop the deal. The FTC asked the US District Court for the Northern District of California earlier this month to intervene, arguing that despite the legal challenges, Microsoft would try to finalize the deal.
Judge Corley’s courtroom hearing could be a decisive test for the FTC. If Microsoft wins, it would signal that there are weaknesses in the FTC case and could lead the agency to drop the challenge of the deal. But a win for the FTC could be a sign that the broader challenge has legs, and could put fresh pressure on Microsoft and Activision to reconsider the multibillion-dollar business marriage.
Sony, whose PlayStation console competes with Microsoft’s Xbox, has been an outspoken critic of the deal. Sony claims that PlayStation gamers could lose access to Call of Duty – a massive franchise that has earned more than $30 billion in lifetime revenue – if Microsoft decided to make the game an Xbox exclusive. Microsoft has denied doing this.
While most governments around the world, including the European Union, have approved the acquisition, Microsoft suffered a setback in April when a UK regulatory body blocked the acquisition. That decision is on appeal.
The high-profile list of witnesses expected to testify before Judge Corley next week includes Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella; Amy Hood, the company’s chief financial officer; Bobby Kotick, the CEO of Activision; and Phil Spencer, the CEO of Microsoft’s Xbox unit. Mr. Ryan, the CEO of Sony, will appear via a pre-recorded video deposition.
