Sony has finally signed Microsoft’s ten-year Call of Duty deal

We're in the endgame of the Activision Blizzard acquisition now

Microsoft’s $69 billion attempted acquisition of Activision Blizzard has been in the works for over 18 months now, and an end seems to finally be in sight. As part of the company’s attempts to get the deal past regulators across the world, Microsoft has been promising Call of Duty releases on a number of platforms, including a 10-year contract with Nintendo, Nvidia’s GeForce NOW streaming service, and a number of others.

Sony held out for quite some time, despite offers for a similar deal — but now it’s finally pulled the trigger. In a tweet on Sunday, Xbox head Phil Spencer confirmed that Microsoft and Sony have finally signed a binding agreement to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation consoles after the acquisition has closed.

“We are pleased to announce that Microsoft and PlayStation have signed a binding agreement to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation following the acquisition of Activision Blizzard,” Spencer tweeted, “We look forward to a future where players globally have more choice to play their favorite games.”

In subsequent statements to The Verge, a Microsoft spokesperson confirmed that like the Nintendo deal, Sony’s deal with Microsoft for Call of Duty will last 10 years. They also confirmed that the deal extends only to Call of Duty, and not other Activision Blizzard content.

The deal with Sony is indicative of the final hurdles Microsoft faces with its acquisition. After Microsoft won the FTC trial that sought to stop the Activision Blizzard takeover, all that remained was the UK’s CMA, who blocked the deal earlier in the year.

The FTC did appeal the court decision, but that appeal was rejected over the weekend, clearing the way for Microsoft to close the deal. The CMA is said to be working with Microsoft to come to a reasonable compromise, and is expected to make a statement on the matter today. Microsoft and Activision Blizzard have until July 18, 2023 to close the deal, else the two companies will have to agree to an extension, which could come with its own challenges.

Either way, with Sony’s opposition to the deal seemingly no longer in play, it seems like we’re in the endgame of this acquisition, and won’t have to wait long for a conclusion.