Sony deal will delay ‘Call Of Duty’ on Xbox Game Pass

The Call Of Duty franchise won’t be coming to Xbox Game Pass for “a number of years” due to Sony‘s ongoing deal.

Earlier this year, it was announced that Microsoft had acquired Activision Blizzard, in a deal that is estimated to cost around £50billion ($68billion USD). Although the deal has not been completed at this time, Microsoft is now working to seek approval from national regulators and has already been accepted in countries such as Saudi Arabia and Brazil.

Meanwhile, the United Kingdom’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has voiced concerns that the company’s acquisition of the Overwatch and World Of Warcraft company may “harm rivals” and “damage competition.”

In response to these concerns, Microsoft will need to convince the Competition and Markets Authority that the deal could “substantially lessen competition in gaming consoles.”

As reported by GamesRadar, Microsoft has replied and argued that ongoing deals like the one between Sony and Activision Blizzard would stop the company from adding any Call Of Duty titles to its Xbox Game Pass subscription service once the acquisition is eventually completed.

“The agreement between Activision Blizzard & Sony includes restrictions on the ability to place Call of Duty titles on Game Pass for a number of years,” the document response reads.

How many years Xbox Game Pass users will have to wait to play Call Of Duty on the service remains to be seen.

Last month, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has said the company is “very, very confident” that its merger with Activision Blizzard will go ahead.

In other news, Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has revealed a major update to its third-person mode ahead of the game’s release on October 28.