Activision Blizzard tycker The Last of Us bevisar att Microsofts uppköp bör gå igenom

För dryga året sedan lät Microsoft som bekant meddela att de ämnar köpa upp Activision Blizzard för $69 miljarder i kontant betalning. Sedan dess har det varit kontanta diskussioner och åkturer där Sony kämpar med näbbar och klor för att stoppa affären från att gå igenom.

Nu har Activision Blizzards EVP of Corporate Affairs och CCO Lulu Cheng Meservey tyckt till om saken på Twitter, och skriver riktat till amerikanska Federal Trade Commission att The Last of Us visar varför affären borde godkännas. Hon antyder även att de skulle vara partiska, och menar att enda orsaken att inte godkänna är att de oroar sig över att Sony kanske inte längre skulle vara marknadsledare.

"Hi FTC — did you catch last night's episode of The Last of Us? It was incredible. No wonder the show is breaking records. It's a true blockbuster, watched by tens of millions. If you haven't already, you should check it out. You may be particularly interested in the fact that The Last of Us is produced by Sony Pictures Television and PlayStation Productions. It's based on a best-selling video game developed by a Sony-owned studio and published by Sony as a PlayStation exclusive.

Why does this matter? The FTC has opposed the Microsoft - Activision Blizzard deal on the grounds that Microsoft could "suppress competition" from rival consoles by leveraging Activision games. It sounds like there's some worry that Sony's position as market leader could be jeopardized by this deal.

But there's no cause for concern. Sony has an unrivaled warchest of IP, not just in gaming but TV, movies, and music — which can be developed into games, or can market existing games. Case in point: the TV show The Last of Us is already generating renewed interest in that game.

Sony's talent and IP across gaming, TV, movies, and music are formidable and truly impressive. It's no wonder they also continue to dominate as the market leader for consoles. In gaming, Sony is "the first of us" - and they will be just fine without the FTC's protection."

Har Lulu Cheng Meservey rätt, klarar sig Sony utan att ha garanterad rätt till några Activision Blizzard-titlar?