Microsoft-Activision Acquisition: FTC Demands More Info on Xbox’s 10-Year Call of Duty Deal With Nintendo

Though the Microsoft-Activision acquisition has been approved by regulators in several nations, the deal continues to be subjected to more questions and doubts by the USA’s FTC, UK’s CMA, and the European Commission.

The former has even slapped a lawsuit against the deal, and the regulators have now dragged Nintendo into the proceedings as well. According to Tweaktown, the FTC has taken up an avid interest with the Switch makers and their recent deal with Microsoft.

The deal in question is Microsoft’s 10-year licensing deal to bring Call of Duty titles to Nintendo devices. The report suggests that the Federal Trade Commission wants more information on the deal and its intricacies.

To learn more on the matter, the FTC has subpoenaed Nintendo of America Senior Vice President of Publisher & Developer Relations, Steve Singer for a grueling seven hours of testimony at the regulator’s complaint counsel. The FTC reportedly wants Singer to shed more light on the deal, as he managed the negotiations with Microsoft for Nintendo.

Xbox signed the commitment with Nintendo to bring Call of Duty titles to the latter’s devices late last year. Following multiple bouts with regulators across the world, many were concerned with the anti-competitive tendencies of the acquisition. However, Microsoft were willing to offer concessions, which includes making sure Call of Duty remained on non-Xbox platforms.

Over the past twelve months, Xbox rivals PlayStation has been critical of the acquisition, with fears of losing out on the wildly popular Call of Duty franchise. While Xbox has offered a similar 10-year deal to Sony as well, the Japanese gaming giants have their doubts about it.