2023-04-16 12:40:00
A US Senator has accused Sony Interactive Entertainment of “anti-competitive behavior”. Microsoft will be happy.
An open letter was sent by a US Senator to the Sony CEO sent in which information regarding the PlayStation Exclusive Contracts of the company for games were requested. The Microsoft acquisition of Activision-Blizzard-King gets more branches.
What happened? The Senator Kevin Cramer from North Dakota (USA) has Sony CEO Kenichiro Yoshida asked for information regarding the company’s exclusive contracts in a letter he wrote over concerns regarding “anticompetitive behavior.” The letter also includes a request for details on Sony’s acquisition agreements. The from Axios discovered letterwhich Cramer sent to Yoshida, expresses concern regarding Sony’s actions to protect its game console business from competition.
The dominance of PlayStation (over Xbox)
“I am concerned that Sony’s dominance of this market and its efforts to maintain its current position is jeopardizing an important economic development opportunity for North Dakota,” said US Senator Cramer. He states that North Dakota “has developed a strategy to lead the nation in computer science and cybersecurity education.” It also notes that “students pursuing careers in gaming are an important part of this effort.”
For the US senator, the reports are worrying, “which Sony appears to be using to shut out competitors rather than offering choices to gamers and developers.”
What internal considerations did Sony have to buy Destiny developer Bungie? After all, this is a developer who previously released the Halo series with Xbox. – (C) Bungie
Sony’s attempt to block proposed acquisition of Activision-Blizzard-King
After more and more control authorities around the world have put the traffic light on “green” – including Sony’s home country Japan – it only seems like a matter of time before the USA also give in. After all, Japan sees no harm for Sony should Microsoft take over the Call of Duty publisher.
Incidentally, the US senator sees Sony’s attempt to prevent Microsoft’s planned takeover of Activision Blizzard King as “anti-competitive behavior”. He goes on to say it’s “even more worrying” that Sony began lobbying the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) and other regulators following they acquired Bungie.
Will the Xbox Series X/S pose a threat to the PlayStation 5 just because Activision-Blizzard is being acquired by Microsoft? – (C) Microsoft, Sony; Montage: DailyGame
Demands of the US Senator
US Senator Cramer made some demands on Sony CEO Yoshida in the letter. In it, he asks for redacted copies of “any agreement granting Sony the exclusive right to distribute a third-party game.” Or also “any agreements between Sony and third parties that prevent them from releasing their games on other systems.” Cramer also wants to know what “strategic reason” there was for the takeover of Bungie. Here, too, he would like to have access to internal company documents. He also requests “all correspondence with US government or regulatory agencies related to video game competitions.”
You can find the entire letter here on Box.com as a PDF.
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