Microsoft Could Be Selling Activision Cloud Gaming Rights To Ubisoft

Microsoft has decided to restructure the proposed deal with Activision Blizzard to transfer the gaming rights for the cloud for current and new Activision Blizzard games to Ubisoft. This transfer of rights is specifically designed to appease the regulators in the UK that are concerned regarding the impact that the proposed $68.7 billion deal Microsoft has registered will have on cloud gaming competition.

This restructured deal could potentially trigger a new regulatory investigation in the United Kingdom- which would last until the 18th of October. Brad Smith, the President of the company, stated that they were restructuring the transaction in order to acquire a narrower set of rights- after being willing to address the concerns regarding the impact of the proposed acquisition on cloud game streaming which was raised by the UK Competition and Markets Authority. 

Microsoft Could Sign A Deal With Ubisoft For Activision Blizzard

This would also include the execution of an agreement that was effective at the closing of Microsoft’s merger that would then transfer the cloud streaming rights for all new and current Activision Blizzard PC and console games that will be released over the next 15 years to Ubisoft Entertainment SA, a leading global game publisher. The rights, according to Brad Smith, would be in perpetuity. The restructured deal also implies that if Microsoft did close its proposed acquisition then it would not be capable of releasing the Activision Blizzard games exclusively on the Xbox Cloud Gaming. 

Smith explained that Ubisoft would be compensating Microsoft for the cloud streaming rights to the games of Activision Blizzard through a single payment, and also through a market-based wholesale pricing mechanism, which would also include an option that supports pricing based on the usage. It will also give the company the opportunity to offer the games of Activision Blizzard to cloud gaming services that were running on non-Windows operating systems.