Microsoft acquired Activision Blizzard King for $69 Billion on 2023-10-13

[see colon]

None of my physical games need a digital license to play. Unless I am not aware of it.

The license is on the disc. On Playstation, the license and data is on the disc, on Xbox, there is data on the disc, but you can download the data from the Xbox store for any currently sold game if your disc is damaged in a way that only the license works, though that sometimes takes jumping through some hoops.

 

[Nesh]

The license is on the disc. On Playstation, the license and data is on the disc, on Xbox, there is data on the disc, but you can download the data from the Xbox store for any currently sold game if your disc is damaged in a way that only the license works, though that sometimes takes jumping through some hoops.

Well yeah, that what makes the difference between purchasing digitally and owning the license on the disk. The latter is permanent ownership. Technically the license has always been on a disk or cartdridge since the inception of console gaming. When I am playing FF7Remake from a physical disk and playing FF7 on my PS1, in both cases I own the game on the disk and can play it whenever I want. Once I purchase the game I have no dependence on the company. I fully own my license forever. Unless there is something I am not aware of and I am going to find out in the future.
There is a problem though when my purchase is dependent on the company's provision and my license can be revoked, canceled, or the terms of license are changed (license to rent but not to own for example)

 

[Deleted member 11852]

So, basically like all PC gamers, all mobile gamers and over 50% of console gamers? Almost everyone just purchases a digital license now. There's still some holdouts on console that buy physical copies of a digital license but even then it's still just a digital license. So I guess that means 99%+ of PC, console and mobile gamers are already doing what you suggest without "companies like Microsoft" having to do anything?

The critical issue is implementation. On PlayStaton platforms, if you have a game on disc, you can play it. Online, offline, indefinitely. There is no digital key that the console needs to verify the validity of, which is how it works with digitally purchased games. The disc is effectively a non-revokable licence with no ability for Sony, or the publisher, to further manage it.

The concept of licensing ownership of software itself, whilst widespread in practice, is not something that is legally enforcement in many territories. I.e, if you buy disc (licence) and the publishers tries to exert their self-declared legal authority to revoke your licence, they won't fly in Europe. With a digital key, they can't legally do this either, but that doesn't matter because they can do this in practice by revoking the key on the platform - which leave the ex-licensee in the situation where they would need to consider legal action for restoration or renumeration.

So whilst it's accurate that say that everybody is still buying licences to use games, some licences are indomitable thereby giving the licensee the same rights and control as full ownership, and others do not.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

Excepting of course games for which the disc only holds an installer, for which you buy a physical copy of a digital license.

 

[orangpelupa]

Excepting of course games for which the disc only holds an installer, for which you buy a physical copy of a digital license.

The license is still on the disc physical copy.

Destiny 2, no man's sky, are even more extreme. basically the disc act only as physical license. As the data in the disc no longer relevant.

Although on playstation you would still need to install then update. While on Xbox can directly download the latest version. Cmiiw.

 

[Silent_Buddha]

The critical issue is implementation. On PlayStaton platforms, if you have a game on disc, you can play it. Online, offline, indefinitely. There is no digital key that the console needs to verify the validity of, which is how it works with digitally purchased games. The disc is effectively a non-revokable licence with no ability for Sony, or the publisher, to further manage it.

The concept of licensing ownership of software itself, whilst widespread in practice, is not something that is legally enforcement in many territories. I.e, if you buy disc (licence) and the publishers tries to exert their self-declared legal authority to revoke your licence, they won't fly in Europe. With a digital key, they can't legally do this either, but that doesn't matter because they can do this in practice by revoking the key on the platform - which leave the ex-licensee in the situation where they would need to consider legal action for restoration or renumeration.

So whilst it's accurate that say that everybody is still buying licences to use games, some licences are indomitable thereby giving the licensee the same rights and control as full ownership, and others do not.

Gotcha... So...

The license is still on the disc physical copy.

Destiny 2, no man's sky, are even more extreme. basically the disc act only as physical license. As the data in the disc no longer relevant.

Although on playstation you would still need to install then update. While on Xbox can directly download the latest version. Cmiiw.

For many games you still basically need to be able to connect to Sony's servers in order to play the physical version of the game even though the license is on the physical medium. For those games, I'm not sure that is all that different from a purely digital license. Once their servers are down or once Sony decides to no longer authenticate those licenses (by allowing the game to connect to online servers or allowing the game to be installed) then the physical disk just becomes an expensive and light paperweight.

Regards,
SB

 

[Deleted member 11852]

For many games you still basically need to be able to connect to Sony's servers in order to play the physical version of the game even though the license is on the physical medium.

I am not aware of any PS3/PS4/PS5 games that require this. Which non-multiplayer games will not run a disc-based game unless the console is connected? To be clear, I can only speak for games released in Europe.

 

[Silent_Buddha]

I am not aware of any PS3/PS4/PS5 games that require this. Which non-multiplayer games will not run a disc-based game unless the console is connected? To be clear, I can only speak for games released in Europe.

Are multiplayer games not also games? I mean, for example, you "can" play No Man's Sky in co-op but that doesn't really make it a multiplayer game and @orangpelupa mentioned that the disc is only the license and the game basically needs to be digitally downloaded. Although I guess if you bought it at launch and are perfectly happy playing the relatively disappointing launch version, then you don't need to connect to Sony's servers.

Or perhaps people that bought CP2077 at launch would be perfectly happy with that version on their PlayStation?

Yes, it's not as black and white as my initial post on the subject implied, but honestly, how many people would be happy with the unpatched version of a game? Hell, wasn't there a single player game recently that "required" the day 1 patch in order to even play it? So, if Sony's server's aren't available then noone would be able to play that game (for example, if they bought it used and Sony had taken down the download server for that game).

Sure, Sony likely has no plans to take down those servers, but then that's the same for digital only games. Physical and digital games are likely using the same download and authentication servers.

Regards,
SB

 

[Deleted member 11852]

Are multiplayer games not also games? I mean, for example, you "can" play No Man's Sky in co-op but that doesn't really make it a multiplayer game and @orangpelupa mentioned that the disc is only the license and the game basically needs to be digitally downloaded. Although I guess if you bought it at launch and are perfectly happy playing the relatively disappointing launch version, then you don't need to connect to Sony's servers.

Sure they are, but I think you're missing the point. Buying a game on disc, at least on a PlayStation console, means that neither Sony nor the publisher can prevent you from playing the code that shipped on that disc under any circumstances. If you connect to the internet then that's a vector for Sony and publishers to push an update that invalidates your ability to run those updates that were released after that disc went gold.

Buying on disc means that code is yours to run forever, and I think this is part of the reason why John L on DF laments the lack of physical releases of games, because if you don't own the original disc you've completely lost the ability to play the original versions of some games which also tend to be the ones most receptive to adaptive frame rates on more powerful hardware.

Again, re-iterating what I said in my earlier post, implementation is key.

 

[Nesh]

Are multiplayer games not also games? I mean, for example, you "can" play No Man's Sky in co-op but that doesn't really make it a multiplayer game and @orangpelupa mentioned that the disc is only the license and the game basically needs to be digitally downloaded. Although I guess if you bought it at launch and are perfectly happy playing the relatively disappointing launch version, then you don't need to connect to Sony's servers.

Or perhaps people that bought CP2077 at launch would be perfectly happy with that version on their PlayStation?

Yes, it's not as black and white as my initial post on the subject implied, but honestly, how many people would be happy with the unpatched version of a game? Hell, wasn't there a single player game recently that "required" the day 1 patch in order to even play it? So, if Sony's server's aren't available then noone would be able to play that game (for example, if they bought it used and Sony had taken down the download server for that game).

Sure, Sony likely has no plans to take down those servers, but then that's the same for digital only games. Physical and digital games are likely using the same download and authentication servers.

Regards,
SB

online multiplayer games require online anyways. By default they need the internet. But the majority of games that have a single player component, that, in almost all cases, require no validation, no online connection except in very rare cases.

 

[orangpelupa]

I can't remember any physical PS games requires online validation.

Without internet,

You insert the disc, it install / runs.

Even online games will install / run. Even if only to the title screen.

 

[see colon]

I am not aware of any PS3/PS4/PS5 games that require this. Which non-multiplayer games will not run a disc-based game unless the console is connected? To be clear, I can only speak for games released in Europe.

I'm not sure about the EU releases, but I believe Call of Duty Advanced Warfare was the last COD you could play without connecting to the internet. Everything after requires you to connect to the internet and install the latest update before you can play any mode, including the campaign. After the patch is installed, you can play offline. I don't remember which release corresponded with the release of Warzone, but that game, at least after the release of Warzone, required that you install the latest patch for the main game plus Warzone. They did something to Warzone to make it smaller I think, because I believe there was a point where you needed over 200GB of space to download the patch+Warzone, and space to perform the install, and it was getting really close to the total available space on a freshly formatted 500GB PS4.

 

[Silent_Buddha]

Also, I'm trying to remember if it was the new Star Wars game that prior to launch they said an online download would be required before you'd be allowed to play the game?

Regards,
SB

 

[Caayn]

I am not aware of any PS3/PS4/PS5 games that require this. Which non-multiplayer games will not run a disc-based game unless the console is connected? To be clear, I can only speak for games released in Europe.

The last year released Gran Turismo 7 basically requires an online connection to play even the singleplayer mode. The singleplayer that's available when offline is effectively nothing more than a quick race mode without any progression or rewards.

 

[Deleted member 11852]

I'm not sure about the EU releases, but I believe Call of Duty Advanced Warfare was the last COD you could play without connecting to the internet. Everything after requires you to connect to the internet and install the latest update before you can play any mode, including the campaign.

I'm not much of a Call of Duty player outside of MW and AW, but I think beyond that is where Activision started to heavily servicify (is that a word?) the franchise. PlayStation included a few CoD games in PS+, I think the last was BLOPS3, and I dived in out of curiosity and the UI was an utter online mess. I feel like Activision view CoD as an online game where the campaign is an extra.

The last year released Gran Turismo 7 basically requires an online connection to play even the singleplayer mode. The singleplayer that's available when offline is effectively nothing more than a quick race mode without any progression or rewards.

So there area a couple of games - probably a few more as well - where possessing the disc is no guarantee of being able to play the game but this approach seems to be few and far between.

 

[SmooTh]

Microsoft v CMA: Failure to respect the understanding on which Tribunal Proceedings are livestreamed | 8 June 2023

 

[JPT]

Microsoft v CMA: Failure to respect the understanding on which Tribunal Proceedings are livestreamed | 8 June 2023

Who is getting the smackdown on this then? CMA or MS or some Fanboys/girls/journalists?

 

[SmooTh]

Seems that the CAT stopped the livestream today because of last time

 

[eastmen]

Who is getting the smackdown on this then? CMA or MS or some Fanboys/girls/journalists?

The tribunal live streamed the event. People watched and discussed what was said and done . Some the detriment of the CMA and Tribunal. Now they are surprised that people would take interest and have opinions on what is going on ?

 

[Shifty Geezer]

Microsoft v CMA: Failure to respect the understanding on which Tribunal Proceedings are livestreamed | 8 June 2023

Please don't post and dump. Spend a moment explaining the content.

Someone has violated court rules by sharing media of the court proceedings outside of the official livestream.

The Tribunal has had drawn to its attention a number of photographs of the livestreamed case management conference in Microsoft v. CMA on 30 May which have been taken, manipulated and broadcast in what can only be the clearest violation of the rules. These violations – which appear to be deliberate – are taken extremely seriously by the Tribunal, not only because they show a disregard for the rule of law and the court’s authority, but also because the concerns of those opposed to livestreaming (hitherto shown to have been unfounded) are given substance.

It's unclear who is responsible. Possibly journalists.