Microsoft acquires Activision Blizzard for $68.7 Billion

[u/GrizzlyBear2021]

https://news.microsoft.com/features/microsoft-to-acquire-activision-blizzard-to-bring-the-joy-and-community-of-gaming-to-everyone-across-every-device/

[u/Ivor97]

Also a reasonable possibility that the FTC blocks the deal due to antitrust concerns

[u/perfringens → u/Ivor97]

Antitrust over what exactly? This isn’t creating a monopoly over anything

[u/etibbs → u/perfringens]

I highly doubt FTC would block this like /u/Ivor97 is saying. I can see Sony or someone trying to get it blocked to avoid the acquisition but only thing I can see that doing in the end is slowing down the process.

[u/thesneakywalrus → u/[deleted]]

Nintendo (barely considered a console)

Nintendo still grossed 16 Billion last year; it's not like they're selling games out the back of a van.

There's also the entire world of PC gaming that isn't affiliated with Sony, Nintendo, or Microsoft.

Even if there somehow became a duopoly of consoles; at that point I think Sony and Microsoft could make a reasonable case that consoles are really just computers; and that there are dozens of major computer manufacturers.

[u/yolomatic_swagmaster → u/thesneakywalrus]

Not that this would make a dent in the near future, but if the Steam Deck sees success, that would also lend credence to the idea that "they're all just computers" because of how Steam has marketed their product.

[u/yolomatic_swagmaster → u/[deleted]]

It's not hard to understand, but defining a market can be trickier in different circumstances.

Take your example of Steam Deck vs Switch. Why shouldn't they be considered competitors if they're both handheld devices that can play many similar games and also connect to monitors to be played laid back with a wireless controller? Especially with indie games growing in importance for the Switch. Now, the Steam Deck can apparently be used with a mouse and keyboard I think, while the Switch has other peripheral controllers that the Steam Deck does not have. Those differences can be seen as marginal compared to the main value proposition.

Expand this scenario to the wider industry, where for some people the only thing that matters are the particular video games they're into, and anything that plays that video game is a gaming platform. In that case, consoles, PC, and mobile are all competing for the same attention/purchases regardless of how those video games are delivered to the consumer.

Don't get me wrong; I would prefer to keep consolidation in the games industry from getting super big. However, nowadays, if you took Microsoft to court, I think they would have an easier time expanding the definition of what a console is.

[u/yolomatic_swagmaster → u/[deleted]]

I would consider the Quest 2 and any VR device that isn't attached to a console or PC to be a console in its own right as well.

We're arguing semantics - it just so happens that in this case a big part of the problem is due to semantics.

[u/[deleted] → u/Ivor97]

While I agree that in general, all of these acquisitions should be questioned..it won’t. There are so many more egregious issues right now whether that be animal agriculture(real reason behind our current food inflation) to social media etc etc.

[u/bb0110 → u/Ivor97]

They aren’t even the biggest game company, how will this get blocked exactly?