The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently filed a new complaint against Microsoft to the US Court of Appeals for their recent Xbox Game Pass price hike, as this is precisely what the FTC was trying to avoid with the acquisition. However, since the complaint raised by Imad Aybad has been sent forward to the US Court of Appeals, Microsoft has spoken out and said that they disagree with the claims made by the FTC.
It wasn’t a surprise that Microsoft finally pulled the trigger and increased the price of the Xbox Game Pass. It was too good to be true for too long. There are many reasons as to why they could have done this, but their merger with Activision and Blizzard most likely plays a part in it. On top of that, subscriber growth to Game Pass has slowed down, meaning they need to find a way to boost revenue, with increasing the subscription price being the only reasonable solution.
In a letter to the court, Microsoft addressed the FTC’s allegations. In the statement, Microsoft said that the FTC “presents a misleading extra-account record of the facts and is a continuation of the agency’s attempts to reinvent its case on appeal.”
Additionally, Microsoft continues to stand by the changes they are making to Game Pass and says that it is unfair to call the new version of the Standard tier a “degraded” version, as it gives the improvement of multiplayer functionality, which the previous iteration of Console Game Pass did not have. To have multiplayer functionality, subscribers must pay an extra $9.99 to utilize those features.
Microsoft is also trying to prove that this version of Game Pass is better than ever, as “the service will offer many new games available day-and-date, in particular Call of Duty.” Call of Duty coming to Game Pass is a big deal and is one of the significant features gamers hoped for from the merger with Activision Blizzard and Microsoft. However, as recent events show, it has come at a pretty hefty price.
Instead of focusing on the subscription prices when Microsoft originally went to trial for the merger, Microsoft points out in the statement that “the FTC barely mentioned subscription at trial, instead focusing on the theory that Microsoft would be withholding Call of Duty from Sony’s Console,” which, we now know is a falsehood. Call of Duty will be available to everyone, regardless of whether they are on Xbox, PlayStation, or PC.
At the moment, it remains to be seen what will result from the FTC’s appeal and whether it will help sway the tides in Microsoft’s favor.
