Microsoft wins FTC fight to buy Activision Blizzard
https://www.theverge.com/2023/7/11/23779039/microsoft-activision-blizzard-ftc-trial-win
From the article, quoting Judge Corley:
… the Court finds the FTC has not shown a likelihood it will prevail on its claim this particular vertical merger in this specific industry may substantially lessen competition. To the contrary, the record evidence points to more consumer access to Call of Duty and other Activision content. The motion for a preliminary injunction is therefore DENIED.
Seriously though? They bought Bethesda and look what they’re doing there. Now they get to add another massive developer as if they weren’t already ridiculously huge? This monopoly stuff has to end. I don’t just mean gaming either. Like 5 companies control our entire food supply. There can only be one internet provider in any area. It’s insane.
This is the inevitable conclusion to free-market based economies. The market will pick winners, and those winners will then have a capital advantage over all new entrants, allowing them to outcompete anyone they want, and to use their size to control the market at large. It’s literally built into the system. The attempts at reform we try are rolled back eventually, and we end up in the same place again. Ma Bell broke up, and for a while we had competition across the industry and innovation. Eventually, market leaders were picked, and we end up where we are now, with few options, and little difference between the ones we have.
Oligopoly, not monopoly. Monopoly implies there’s just 1 company. In gaming there is far from one company.
What did Microsoft do with Bethesda?
Bought them and made their games Microsoft exclusives.
Let’s be honest. Bethesda games have always been PC exclusives. All other platforms got an unfinished beta and PC got the real game.
Microsoft aren’t a monopoly, especially in gaming. Even buying ABK they won’t be even remotely close to a monopoly.
MS isn’t even top 2 in a hardware market of 3. They’re not even top 4 in publishers either. Hardly a monopoly.