Will Call of Duty come to Xbox Game Pass as Microsoft wins against FTC in Activision acquisition?

In a recent turn of events, Microsoft won its case against the US FTC over acquiring Activision, the owner of the Call of Duty IP. The news comes right after Judge Corley revoked the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) request for a 'preliminary injunction.' As per the court ruling, the merger won't lessen competition in the market and instead will lead to more consumers getting access to games like Call of Duty, which Activision owns.

Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard King is one of the most controversial deals of the decade. Since Activision owns major IPs such as Call of Duty, the deal is deemed anti-competitive by many in the industry, including major players like PlayStation.

In fact, the deal was previously blocked by US FTC as well as UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). Now that MS won their case in the US, the chances of COD coming to the Xbox Game Pass are more than ever.

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Possibilities of Call of Duty coming to Xbox Game Pass after Microsoft's win against the FTC

Although MS winning against the FTC is a step in favor of acquiring Activision, COD might not just immediately make an appearance in the Xbox Game Pass. This is due to the fact that UK's CMA is currently blocking the deal. Previously, the CMA stated that the merger would be anti-competitive in nature as Microsoft, with the rich library of Activision's IPs, will have the necessary means to establish a monopoly in the cloud gaming space.

So far, three major regulatory bodies discussed the merger. Although the FTC was against it, the recent court ruling gives MS the green light. Similarly, the EU Merger Control Commission passed the deal under certain conditions. Now only UK's CMA remains to approve this acquisition.

Phil Spencer, the Head of Xbox, has shared his intentions of bringing COD and other AVBK IPs to the masses with the help of the Game Pass. However, this won't be as easy as it sounds. The agreement between Activision AVBK and Sony doesn't allow Call of Duty to be included in the Xbox Game Pass for a "number of years," i.e., until 2025.

In conclusion, will COD make an appearance in the Xbox Game Pass? Simply put, yes, but only if UK's CMA approves the deal. Even if it passes, the series won't be making an appearance on the Game Pass at least until 2025.

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This is all there is to know about Microsoft's acquisition of AVBK at the moment. According to the deal, MS is set to acquire the latter for a whopping $68.7 billion. Follow Sportskeeda's Call of Duty section for the latest news about COD games.