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- 1 Microsoft announced the acquisition of Activision Blizzard in January 2022.
- 2 Regulators were concerned about potential monopoly in the gaming market.
The day technology giant Microsoft was awaiting has finally arrived. Call of Duty maker Activision Blizzard is now a part of Bill Gates and Paul Allen’s microcomputer revolution. The Xbox team announced the news on their official blog and X (formerly Twitter) handle. They wrote, “We officially welcome Activision Blizzard and their teams to Xbox.” Also, “It’s a good day to play Xbox.”
No ‘Metaverse’ This Time
Metaverse did not make it to the announcement, unlike the initial one where Satya Nadella, Microsoft CEO, highlighted that the deal would be pivotal for the metaverse development. The blog post wrote, “This acquisition will accelerate the growth in Microsoft’s gaming business across mobile, PC, Console, and cloud and will provide building blocks for the metaverse.”
So many stories to tell, so many characters to meet, so many worlds to explore…
— Xbox (@Xbox) October 13, 2023
It’s a good day to play: https://t.co/6i3RHmwsNZ pic.twitter.com/y7t2Q5mtrD
Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Gaming, indicates upcoming content in the coming months. However, he is keeping that a secret for now. Additionally, Meta Platforms (formerly Facebook) might be seeing a new competitor in the market if Microsoft’s deal has anything to do with the metaverse.
Bobby Kotick, Activision Blizzard CEO, is likely to keep the position until 2023. Nonetheless, he could potentially step down after having to serve for over three decades. He joined the Squawk Box, a chat show broadcasted by CNBC, and told them that the company believed that this deal would get through.
Announced in January 2022, the deal came to a halt when Britain’s regulator Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) blocked the deal attributing to a potential stranglehold by Microsoft over the cloud gaming market. The United States agency Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is still opposing the move. However, this may bring about a little difference, according to the experts.
Still, Miles to Go
The hype for the metaverse began following Meta Platform’s rebranding from Facebook in November 2021. However, the company failed to convince the world to delve into it. Meta’s expensive Quest devices are advancing towards affordability issues, making them a fit for affluents only.
Microsoft’s HoloLens comes from the same tribe. However, the initial one was intended for the developers. With gaming at the heart of the metaverse, the deal may give some momentum to the development of virtual worlds. Nvidia, the leading graphic processing unit (GPU), could also play an important part in it.
In March 2023, Microsoft and Nvidia joined hands for the industrial metaverse. Moreover, Nvidia President, Jensen Huang, said during the GTC Developers Conference 2023 that the company will bring artificial intelligence (AI) to every industry. AI is another vital component powering the metaverse.
Google’s search engine shows Microsoft, Meta, Nvidia, and more among the “biggest metaverse companies.” Nevertheless, a ‘metaverse’ future is a wide-stretching path tech goliaths are obliged to follow. Despite being leaders in the sector, the current state of technology requires stretching out to an ultra-advanced state where metaverse development is viable.
Anurag is working as a fundamental writer for The Coin Republic since 2021. He likes to exercise his curious muscles and research deep into a topic. Though he covers various aspects of the crypto industry, he is quite passionate about the Web3, NFTs, Gaming, and Metaverse, and envisions them as the future of the (digital) economy. A reader & writer at heart, he calls himself an “average guitar player” and a fun footballer.
