If I understand, this is limited to uk, and people there will reach any game on gamepass, but if someone want to stream them (or just activision's?) would have to go to ubisoft's store, that probably will be on microsoft's servers, and probably will be included in gamepass. Is this madness correct?
Microsoft acquired Activision Blizzard King for $69 Billion on 2023-10-13
- Thread starter Rangers
- Start date
Not quite.
Ubisoft will pay MS a one time sum, and a fee per usage for the ABK streaming rights. Ubisoft can then sell those streaming rights to anyone who is willing to pay for it. Once paid for, the license owner (Sony etc) can stream those titles on their platform.
What will stop microsoft from forming a new internal studio, moving all the people from activision there, and then lending activision's ip to this new studio?
- Please may I have moar games?
- No! Bwahahahaha!
The contract would contemplate this scenario, and forcing it would make microsoft look bad in the next round of acquisitions, but 15 years are a lot, many things can happen
- Please may I have moar games?
- No! Bwahahahaha!
The contract would contemplate this scenario, and forcing it would make microsoft look bad in the next round of acquisitions, but 15 years are a lot, many things can happen
Hmmm. So MS could sell rights for say $5 a title download, and then Ubi can sell them back to MS for $10 a title, and MS can make those games exclusive, paying more than rival platforms? Or is the expectation that other platforms will all pay $3 and it won't be worth MS paying for exclusivity? Or are their caveats in place to prevent MS buying back exclusivity?
It’s streaming rights. So it would be pay per usage and a one time bulk fee for the ownership of the rights to cloud streaming on ABK titles. I don’t believe downloads are included because you need to be online to stream from servers.
So UBI will pay millions for ownership in perpetuity for the cloud streaming rights. And they have to pay MS for usage (more streaming players playing ABK titles = pay MS more)
anyone including MS could in theory pay for exclusivity over streaming rights yes, MS or Sony etc. UBI wants to maximize revenue so any exclusivity contract is likely to be short. They’ll want to sell COD and ABK titles to as many people as possible and market it maybe, to ensure that they are making their profits from this arrangement. At least in theory.
Not every Gamepass game is available on cloud. Most newer releases are, but not every one. Last time I counted I think there were 150-200 cloud games but almost 400 games on Gamepass.
Silent_Buddha
Legend
This seems to imply that things are getting a little weird.
In the EU, as a long as a person owns an ABK game (on whatever platform) they can stream it on whatever streaming platform they want and MS has to allow that streaming platform rights to stream it.
In the UK, UBIsoft controls who and what platforms get to stream the ABK games.
So, if you live already own the game, it's better to live in the EU.
If you don't already own the game ... who would charge more for streaming rights? MS or UBIsoft? Also, this would mean that a streaming service may have the right to stream an ABK game in the EU but the UK.Also, considering that MS has already entered into deals with multiple streaming services, how does this impact those? Will they now have to negotiate with UBIsoft in order to hopefully be allowed to stream ABK games in the UK that they have already licensed to stream in the EU?
Do the smaller streaming services even have a chance in the UK?
Regards,
SB
Johnny Awesome
Veteran
I knew MS would find a way to get this through. By the time streaming matters, COD might not even matter anymore. LOL.
In the meantime COD, WOW and Diablo IV are going to drive GP subscriptions like mad.
In the meantime COD, WOW and Diablo IV are going to drive GP subscriptions like mad.
I am sure there are a ton of clauses built in preventing ubi selling exclusive streaming rights to another company even on a per title basis. I mean after all this is supposed to alleviate the UK's concern about a cloud monopoly. Ubi selling exclusivity to another company would go against that. I am also sure there are clauses that prevent the rights going to another company if ubisoft itself were to be sold or taken over. So for instance if ubisoft was getting sold to sony, ms would likely have a chance to buy back those rights or they may already be built into the contract that the rights revert back upon a sale
I think there are going to be more questions about if MS takes an abk property and assigns it to a non abk studio to develop is that still an abk game ? What if MS moves say sledgehammer over to bethesda, what happens with those games ?
Anyway its great to see this is almost over. I bet MS closes over the FTC
IF you are replying to me , I am bringing up that it was done to pass the CMA and get approved in the UK. If ubi was to sell the rights exclusively to one company that would go against the reason the CMA wanted MS to do this.
I mean; it’s not fully clear what has been proposed.
What if ABK makes an exclusive xbox title; do they have streaming rights still to sell?
Johnny Awesome
Veteran
The devil's in the details.
Not you, Fehu.
But like iroboto says it's not entirely clear the exact details, but we do know they need to license cloud streaming for ABK titles in the UK, US, Japan & everywhere else not in the EU.
The CMA had a problem with Microsoft having exclusive rights to stream ABK. With this deal they won't. And the choice of UbiSoft is nice since they are seen as being independent. They are not some large US corporation like Amazon, Google or one of the 3 console companies. They are a large publisher, yes, but not as large as the other companies in the overall streaming market. And they are based out of France not too far from the UK too.
Originally folks thought they might sell those rights to EE after they already signed a 10 year deal with them earlier in the year. But they're a mobile network & Internet provider & not a game company. Doesn't make sense for them to have them.
Yes, it's the rights to all ABK games past, present and 15 years into the future. But only streaming
FTC is going to bring this back into its kangaroo court but they don't have anyway currently to stop MS from closing.
Microsoft reportedly may close its Activision Blizzard purchase on Friday, October 13
A new report claims that Microsoft is planning to officially announce it has closed the deal to acquire Activision Blizzard on Friday, October 13, barring any last minute surprise from the UK CMA.
www.neowin.net
Save the date
friday 13th is a great day to announce it.Microsoft reportedly may close its Activision Blizzard purchase on Friday, October 13
A new report claims that Microsoft is planning to officially announce it has closed the deal to acquire Activision Blizzard on Friday, October 13, barring any last minute surprise from the UK CMA.
Save the date
View attachment 9766
Fun fact , Jason wasn't the killerfriday 13th is a great day to announce it.
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