Nintendo was not the only video game corporation striking big deals with Microsoft yesterday: Microsoft is also teaming up with NVIDIA to put Activision titles, including Call of Duty, on NVIDIA GeForce NOW’s cloud gaming services – presuming, of course, that the Activision-Blizzard merger into Microsoft actually goes through.
“On Tuesday, Microsoft and NVIDIA announced the companies have agreed to a 10-year partnership to bring Xbox PC games to the NVIDIA® GeForce NOW cloud gaming service, which has more than 25 million members in over 100 countries. The agreement will enable gamers to stream Xbox PC titles from GeForce NOW to PCs, macOS, Chromebooks, smartphones and other devices. It will also enable Activision Blizzard PC titles, such as Call of Duty, to be streamed on GeForce NOW after Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision closes. […] The partnership delivers increased choice to gamers and resolves NVIDIA’s concerns with Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard. NVIDIA therefore is offering its full support for regulatory approval of the acquisition. Microsoft and NVIDIA will begin work immediately to integrate Xbox PC games into GeForce NOW, so that GeForce NOW members can stream PC games they buy in the Windows Store, including third-party partner titles where the publisher has granted streaming rights to NVIDIA. Xbox PC games currently available in third-party stores like Steam or Epic Games Store will also be able to be streamed through GeForce NOW.”
The news comes as Activision-Blizzard and Microsoft reps convened in Brussels in their attempt to convince European Commission regulators to approve the $68.7B buyout, which US, UK, and EU regulators have argued could stifle competition in the gaming market.
“We are bringing Call of Duty to 150 million more people who don’t get it today,” Microsoft’s Brad Smith told the Commission. Reps also slighted Sony, which has an obvious motive to not want Microsoft to grow and become an even bigger competitor, has reportedly refused to return Activision phone calls, and has rejected partnership proposals. ABK says Sony’s opposition to the deal is merely an effort to “protect its two-decade dominance in video games.”
