The head of Microsoft complains that Xbox is the third most popular console
2 min readBrad Smith deputy chair And the head of Microsoft wrote an opinion piece for the Wall Street Journal where he complained about the challenges Xbox faced in the video game industry and preventing Activision from buying it.
Brad Smith began: “The FTC reportedly has plans to sue Microsoft to block our acquisition of Activision Blizzard.” “It would be a big mistake. It would hurt competition, consumers and thousands of video game producers.”
Later in his letter, the Microsoft chief stated that they “face significant challenges in the video game industry,” emphasizing that “Xbox is still in third place in consoles, stuck behind the dominant PlayStation and Nintendo Switch.”
Not only does Smith highlight Xbox’s recent standing over consoles, but he also says “we don’t have a significant presence in the mobile industry,” which is the area that’s growing the most and profitable. “A large portion of the revenue goes to Google and Apple through store fees.”
Given the competition Microsoft faces, Brad Smith advocates the acquisition of Activision Blizzard, which would enhance the Xbox Game Pass catalog, which includes Ultimate Cloud Gaming for smartphones in the version.
“Microsoft needs a full library of popular games, and as it is, we just don’t have enough. That’s where the acquisition comes in. Activision Blizzard comes with popular mobile, PC, and console games, including Candy Crush, World of Warcraft, and Call of Duty “, wrote the head of Microsoft.
Throughout his script, Brad Smith also guarantees that he won’t pull Call of Duty from PlayStation, because it would be “economically irrational.” In conclusion, it is argued that blocking a publisher takeover would make “the video game industry less competitive and gamers would be worse off”.
“Think about how better it would be to stream a movie from your couch than drive to a Blockbuster. We want to bring that innovation to the gaming industry.”
What do you think of Brad Smith’s words?
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