Shulou(Shulou.com)11/24 Report--

CTOnews.com, Nov. 24, newly released documents show that Microsoft and Sony do not expect to launch the next-generation mainframe until 2028 at the earliest.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the two companies discussed the potential timing of the new console as part of an ongoing investigation by CMA, the UK regulator, into Microsoft's proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard.

CTOnews.com has learned that CMA is concerned about the impact the $68.7 billion deal could have on PlayStation's competitiveness, given that Microsoft will take ownership of the call of Duty series after the acquisition. "this impact is likely to be particularly pronounced when the next generation of consoles are launched, as players will make new decisions about which hosts to buy," the regulator said. "

Both Sony and Microsoft launched their current-generation consoles, PS5 and Xbox Series X / S, in November 2020. In response to CMA's concerns, Microsoft said it was many years away from the launch of the next-generation mainframe and claimed that any impact of the Activision deal was speculative.

"there is no dispute between the two sides [Microsoft and Activision] that some players may re-evaluate their host purchase options when the new generation of hosts are launched," Microsoft said. but they also noted that this is an event that only happens every eight years, and that the next generation of new hosts is not expected to be released until the fall of 2028. "

Sony believes that Microsoft will make call of Duty an exclusive game for Xbox, which is a very real threat, while Microsoft says it has no commercial incentive to do so.

Microsoft's statement also confirmed that it has made a contract offer to Sony to provide "call of Duty"at least until the end of 2027" on PlayStation. Even if Microsoft does plan to remove call of Duty from the PlayStation platform after 2027, Microsoft believes that "Sony has plenty of time to adjust its business strategy."

In a statement by some of its editors, Sony also mentioned Microsoft's proposal to keep call of Duty on PlayStation until 2027, which could affect the fate of its next mainframe. " Microsoft proposes to keep Activision's games available on PlayStation until 2027. When SIE launches its next-generation PlayStation console, it will lose call of Duty and other animated games, making it extremely vulnerable to changes in consumer console choices and subsequent decline in competitiveness, "Sony wrote.

Sony also said that "even assuming that SIE has the ability and resources to develop a successful game series similar to call of Duty, it will take years and billions of dollars to create a call of Duty challenger, and the example of EA's Battlefield shows that any such effort is likely to be unsuccessful."

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