Jim Ryan's Private Email Suggests Sony is Not Worried About Losing Call of Duty
A very interesting thread has emerged in the hearing on Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Jim Ryan's disclosed private correspondence suggests that Sony isn't afraid of losing Call of Duty at all.
The process of Microsof's acquisition of Activision Blizzard can already be safely called a soap opera. Every now and then new revelations about it surface, and Sony is trying to stop the whole procedure at all costs. An evidentiary hearing on the case, still underway in the US, has revealed a very interesting detail undermining the Japanese giant's narrative (via The Verge).
As you may recall, the most fierce dispute involves the presence of Call of Duty on PlayStation. Sony does not want to lose access to the brand and has repeatedly stressed that it does not believe Microsoft's assurances that the series will not become exclusive to Xbox consoles.
Interestingly, email correspondence between Jim Ryan and Chris Deering (former head of Sony Interactive Entertainment) was revealed during the current hearing. The current CEO of the company announced in it that he had spent a lot of time with Phil Spencer and Bobby Kotick, thanks to which he is almost certain that Call of Duty will not disappear from PlayStation consoles.
The Verge asked Microsoft to comment on the matter. The response was given by David Cuddy, who serves as the company's general manager for public affairs.
"Today proved that Sony knew from the beginning that we would keep our promise and not stop releasing [Call of Duty - editor's note] games on their platform [PlayStation - ed.]. This showed that the attempt to block the deal is only to protect their dominant position in the market."
The news suggests that Sony authorities are in fact convinced that Call of Duty will not disappear from PlayStation. Nonetheless, documents filed by the giant during the ongoing hearing say otherwise. This turn of events puts the company in an unfavorable light.
