Call Of Duty Will Remain On PlayStation For Three Years After Current Agreement, Jim Ryan Says

gameinformer.com:

Microsoft announced in January that it was moving to acquire Activision Blizzard for a colossal $68.7 billion, making it far and away the most expensive acquisition in gaming history. Now, of course, regulators like the U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority and the U.S.’ FTC must approve of this, and those investigations are ongoing. But suppose all goes according to Microsoft’s plan. In that case, the company will own Activision Blizzard, the publisher and developer behind Call of Duty, Overwatch, World of Warcraft, and more, by the spring or summer of 2023. 

Shortly after the company announced its plans to acquire Activision Blizzard, Xbox head Phil Spencer confirmed his company’s intent “to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation” following the purchase. He reaffirmed this commitment earlier this month, going so far as to speak to PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan and promise that Call of Duty will remain on PlayStation even after Activision Blizzard and Sony’s contracts have run their courses (Thanks, The Verge).

In a new statement to GamesIndustry.biz, Ryan has revealed that Call of Duty will remain on PlayStation for three years after his company’s contracts with Activision Blizzard are done. However, Ryan calls this “inadequate” and seemingly expresses some frustration over the fact that Spencer publicly discussed that he and Ryan had spoken about this Call of Duty situation, calling it “private business.” 

GamesIndustry.biz says it’s believed that the current deal between Sony and Activision Blizzard is set to last for the next three Call of Duty releases, including this year’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II.

It was revealed in February that Call of Duty will reportedly skip 2023, opting to ditch its usual annual release