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Call of Duty battle over after Sony deal with Microsoft

Activision Blizzard Call of Duty character Shredder.Activision Blizzard

Call of Duty will stay on PlayStation in a deal between Sony and Microsoft, ending a fight over its future.

It comes after a US judge rejected calls to block Microsoft from taking over games publisher Activision Blizzard.

Microsoft's Phil Spencer said the tech giants agreed to a "binding agreement" to keep Call of Duty on the gaming platform.

Players would have "more choice", he said.

Mr Spencer signalled the development on Sunday, bringing to an end a protracted battle between the two companies since Microsoft announced its intended acquisition of Activision Blizzard in early 2022.

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Microsoft has confirmed to the BBC it is a 10-year agreement with Sony, similar to the reported deal it struck with Nintendo.

Biggest gaming buyout

Microsoft's proposed $69bn (£52.6bn) purchase of Activision would be the biggest of its kind in gaming industry history.

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been trying to block Microsoft's buyout of Activision, in a deal that has divided regulators globally.

The decision by a US judge to reject a request by the FTC late on Thursday to temporarily halt the deal means the merger could be completed by Tuesday.

However, the US regulator, arguing the deal would reduce competition, has since asked a different court for a "temporary pause" on the deal.

But Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley said she did not think the regulator would win in its case.

"The FTC has not shown it is likely to succeed on its assertion the combined firm will probably pull Call of Duty from Sony PlayStation, or that its ownership of Activision content will substantially lessen competition in the video game library subscription and cloud gaming markets," Judge Corley wrote in her decision.

It comes after the deal was approved by the European Union, while a bid to block the merger in the UK is currently under appeal.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which had initially blocked the takeover, has now said it will spend six weeks giving "full and proper consideration" to look at the "detailed and complex" submissions from Microsoft.

The CMA has given itself until 29 August, though it said it "aims to discharge its duty as soon as possible and in advance of this date".