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☆ All kids want for Christmas this year … Robux and gaming subscriptions
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Samantha Murphy Kelly | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —Nicole Randol — a Missouri-based mother of two boys, ages 6 and 10 — recently posted a message on a popular Facebook parenting group about Robux, the virtual gaming currency for the platform Roblox: Target was having a 40%-off sale for Robux. “I expect it to be the most exciting thing they open [on Christmas],” Randol, who bought two $100 Robux cards, told CNN. Gaming subscriptions continue to gain popularity, too. “What’s changed, naturally, is the games that families are playing.”According to ESA, more than 212 million Americans play video games on a regular basis. Still, with the rise of subscriptions and gaming currency, what lands under the Christmas tree may be smaller in size than years before.

Persons: CNN — Nicole Randol —, —, ” Randol, Fortnite, trumping, ”, Christopher Byrne, Guy, “, ” Roblox, Robux, Michael Inouye, Cozy, Byrne, “ What’s, ” Byrne, Jim Silver, Bitzies, ” Bryne, Parija Kavilanz Organizations: CNN, Robux, Entertainment Software Association, Epic Games, PlayStation, Pro, Apple, ABI Research, National Retail Federation, ESA, Gaming Locations: Missouri

☆ Sony’s PlayStation Access controller offers a new social lifeline for gamers with disabilities
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( Catherine Thorbecke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Sony Interactive Entertainment is the maker of the wildly popular PlayStation consoles and a lineup of fan-favorite PlayStation games. Paul Amadeus Lane, an accessibility consultant working with Sony Interactive Entertainment, is pictured here with the Access controller, a Sony device specifically designed for gamers with disabilities. After years of tinkering and consulting with gamers who have disabilities like Lane, Sony Interactive Entertainment unveiled a first look at its Access controller for gamers with disabilities earlier this month. Gamers get a first look at Sony's Access controller, a highly-customizable device designed specifically for people with disabilities, at an event in San Mateo in September. “The industry needs to understand that the Xbox controller, the PlayStation controller, while they’re great and while they’re very beneficial, they cannot help everyone,” he said.

Persons: CNN — Grant Stoner, ” Stoner, I’ve, Stoner, Grant Stoner, Paul Amadeus Lane, quadriplegic, Lane, ” Lane, Alvin Daniel, ” Daniel, Daniel, “, ”, he’s, there’s Organizations: CNN, Super Nintendo, “, Pittsburgh, Sony, Sony Interactive Entertainment, Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo, Gamers, Sony’s PlayStation, Gran Turismo Locations: San Mateo

Microsoft, which owns the Xbox gaming system, closed its $69 billion deal to buy game-maker Activision Blizzard on Friday after fending off global opposition from antitrust regulators and rivals. It marks a career-defining moment for Spencer, who first joined Microsoft as an intern in 1988 and has helmed Xbox since 2014. When the companies announced a planned merger in January 2022, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella made clear it would be "critical for Activision Blizzard to drive forward” on its commitments to improve its workplace culture. As of late last year, Activision Blizzard had 13,000 employees, about 72% in North America, according to a regulatory filing. “It is a new day for workers at Activision Blizzard,” said CWA President Claude Cummings Jr. in a statement Friday.

Persons: Phil Spencer, Spencer, “, ”, Gil Luria, Davidson, he’s, Bobby Kotick, who's, Kotick, Satya Nadella, Joe Biden's, ” Luria, George Jijiashvili, Elder, ” Jijiashvili, Claude Cummings Jr, ” Cummings Organizations: Activision Blizzard, Microsoft, Activision, PlayStation, Sony, U.S . Federal Trade, ZeniMax Media, Bethesda Softworks, Communications Workers of America Locations: Southern California, U.S, United Kingdom, San Francisco, Bethesda, North America, Canada

☆ Atari 2600+ sees its future in retro gaming — and maybe in a handheld too
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-30 | by ( Michael Nam | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —The Atari home video game system took the late1970s and early 1980s by storm, complete with faux wood paneling and a classic joystick with a big red button. Centipede - Atari 2600 VCS Videogame ArcadeImages/Alamy Stock PhotoWith Rosen at the helm, the company is taking a closer look at its own history to chart its future, releasing remastered or reimagined versions of its classics like “Missile Command” and “Centipede,” producing the critically acclaimed “Atari 50” interactive documentary, and introducing its soon-to-be released retro console the Atari 2600+. They’re radically different things.”The retro console arrives in November at a $130 price point and in a more compact version. While it comes packaged with 10 games in a single cartridge, the console will also play new titles and work with original Atari 2600 and 7800 game cartridges. Atari is reimagining the classic "Haunted House" video game.

Persons: Wade Rosen, Rosen, ” Rosen, “, They’re, ”, Tengku Bahar, there’d, It’s Organizations: CNN, Atari, “, Command, Getty, Nightdive Studios, Nintendo, PlayStation Locations: Hong Kong, AFP

REUTERS/Kevork Djansezian Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Sept 27 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Microsoft’s (MSFT.O) gaming master plan is slowly coming together. But Microsoft’s gaming revenue was still around 8% of group sales, or $15 billion, for the year ended June 2022. Given these risks, it makes sense for Nadella to grow his exposure to those parts of the gaming market which are less likely to be upended by cloud gaming. It remains possible that cloud gaming is a dog that doesn’t bark – or at least not for some time. As a result of the Activision deal, Nadella has a hedge of sorts against cloud gaming happening too fast.

Persons: Kevork, Satya Nadella’s, Ampere, ”, GamesIndustry.biz, Nadella, George Hay, Katrina Hamlin Organizations: Activision, REUTERS, Reuters, Bethesda, Microsoft, Satya Nadella’s Activision, Ampere, Sony, Nintendo, Reuters Graphics, Netflix, Gamers, Xbox, PlayStation, Big Tech, Apple, HK, reckons, Competition, Markets Authority, CMA, Xbox Cloud Gaming, Ubisoft Entertainment, Ubisoft, Thomson Locations: Los Angeles , California, United States, U.S

☆ Microsoft can close its Activision merger, federal judge rules
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —A federal judge will not block Microsoft (MSFT) from closing its $69 billion deal to acquire video game giant Activision Blizzard, a defeat for US regulators who had asked for a temporary injunction while legal challenges to the merger unfold. Microsoft could potentially finalize the deal with Activision in a matter of days, ahead of a July 18 contractual deadline, or the parties could mutually seek to extend that timeframe. During a five-day hearing last month in federal court, Microsoft executives including CEO Satya Nadella testified that properties such as “Call of Duty” would not be restricted from competitors following the deal’s close. UK officials also previously moved to block the Activision merger in April, citing some of the same concerns the FTC raised in its case and triggering an appeal from Microsoft. “Microsoft and Activision have agreed with the CMA that a stay of the litigation in the UK would be in the public interest and the parties have made a joint submission … to this effect.”

Persons: ”, “, Jacqueline Scott Corley, Corley, Satya Nadella, Tuesday’s, Microsoft’s, “ We’re, Brad Smith, we’ve, Bobby Kotick, Meta’s, ” Douglas Farrar, we’ll, ” Smith Organizations: CNN, Microsoft, Activision, US, Court, Northern, Northern District of, Sony PlayStation, Federal Trade Commission, FTC, Regulators, Nvidia, Nintendo, “, PlayStation, Appeals, Ninth Circuit, Markets, CMA Locations: Northern District, Northern District of California, ”, San Francisco

☆ FTC to seek federal court order temporarily blocking Microsoft-Activision deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —The Federal Trade Commission plans to file in federal court to prevent Microsoft and Activision-Blizzard from closing their $69 billion merger, according to a person familiar with the matter. The FTC sued Microsoft in the agency’s administrative court in December, challenging the deal as anticompetitive. “We welcome the opportunity to present our case in federal court,” Brad Smith, Microsoft’s president, said in a statement. Microsoft has struck 10-year licensing agreements with some game platforms that will ensure those titles remain available. Antitrust officials from the European Union blessed the deal last month, saying that Microsoft’s concessions were enough to address its competition concerns.

Persons: ” Brad Smith Organizations: CNN, Federal Trade Commission, Microsoft, Activision, Court, Northern, Northern District of, FTC, Sony, “, Antitrust, European Union Locations: Northern District, Northern District of California, U.S, European

☆ UK competition regulator warns Microsoft’s Activision deal could harm millions of gamers
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Washington CNN —Microsoft’s $69 billion purchase of Activision Blizzard could harm competition by letting Microsoft restrict Activision’s video games to proprietary platforms such as Xbox, UK officials said Wednesday, in the latest challenge to the tech giant’s blockbuster acquisition. The UK’s competition regulator said the proposed deal, which would make Microsoft (MSFT) the world’s third-largest video game publisher, could hurt tens of millions of gamers in the country by leading to higher prices or fewer choices. The provisional finding by the UK Competition and Markets Authority is another sign of growing opposition to the deal by antitrust regulators worldwide. In December, the US Federal Trade Commission sued to block the acquisition over similar claims, and the European Union is also evaluating the deal. Cloud gaming services grant players access to video games without the need for downloading the games to a local PC or console.

☆ Microsoft says it has reached a 10-year deal to bring ‘Call of Duty’ to Nintendo
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Samantha Murphy Kelly | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Microsoft said late Tuesday it has reached a 10-year deal to bring the 19-year-old game franchise to Nintendo after its acquisition of Activision Blizzard, which makes the game, is completed. The Nintendo deal is the latest attempt by Microsoft to ease concerns that its blockbuster acquisition of the gaming giant could harm competition in the industry. Microsoft head of gaming Phil Spencer announced the commitment with Nintendo in a tweet and said it will continue to offer “Call of Duty” on gaming platform Steam if the deal is completed. The company’s decision to bring “Call of Duty” to Nintendo comes as Microsoft’s Activision deal faces regulatory scrutiny on both sides of the Atlantic. “Nintendo is not a high priority for ‘Call of Duty,’ all things considered – it has done perfectly fine without being on Nintendo recently,” Abbruzzese added.

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