Everything that ex-FTC chair Lina Khan said would happen is happening.
Those of you who followed the drama around Microsoft’s unprecedented near-$70 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard will recall Khan was one of the few voices against the buyout.
She argued, at the time, that consolidation would lead to price increases and layoffs. A lengthy court case followed, which concluded with the FTC losing and the acquisition going ahead.
Khan became an increasingly divisive figure during the process, with some vocal fans urging her to step aside and allow the transaction to take place.
Now, in the aftermath of 50% price hikes to subscription service Game Pass, Khan is having the last laugh.
Writing on X (or Twitter) she said:
“Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision has been followed by significant price hikes and layoffs, harming both gamers and developers.
As we’ve seen across sectors, increasing market consolidation and increasing prices often go hand-in-hand.
As dominant firms become too-big-to-care, they can make things worse for their customers without having to worry about the consequences.”
In the aftermath of the acquisition, Microsoft has laid off thousands of employees across Xbox and its pursuit for profitability has seen it significantly ramp up the price of Game Pass and water down its services.
Earlier today, Bloomberg reported that putting Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 in the subscription – one of the reasons many fans wanted the acquisition to go ahead in the first place – cost the company over $300 million, with a whopping 82% of the shooter’s full-price sales coming from PlayStation during its launch month in the US.
Hopefully this sorry scenario will remain fresh in the mind of gamers the next time a giant tech merger hits the headlines.
As the Editor of Push Square, Sammy has over 15 years of experience analysing the world of PlayStation, from PS3 through PS5 and everything in between. He’s an expert on PS Studios and industry matters, as well as sports games and simulators. He also enjoys RPGs when he has the time to dedicate to them, and is a bit of a gacha whale.