Microsoft Did Not Commit to Keeping Bethesda Content Multiplatform, Contrary to FTC Claims – EU Regulators

The United State’s Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently filed an antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft amidst competition concerns in an attempt to block the company’s proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard. The potential of franchises like Call of Duty potentially being taken off PlayStation has been a concern that the agency has raised, which has said that Microsoft offered similar concessions to EU regulators for the acquisition of Bethesda’s parent company ZeniMax, only to go on and make Redfall and Starfield exclusive to Xbox and PC.

The European Commission, however, has responded and called that inaccurate, saying that prior to the ZeniMax deal’s approval, Microsoft made no such commitment to keep future Bethesda games multiplatform.

“The Commission cleared the Microsoft/ZeniMax transaction unconditionally as it concluded that the transaction would not raise competition concerns,” the European Commission says (via Seeking Alpha). “Microsoft did not offer any commitments to the Commission.”

As per EU regulators, the approval of the ZeniMax deal did not hinge on any such guarantees.

“The conclusion that there are no competition concerns did not rely on any statements made by Microsoft about the future distribution strategy concerning ZeniMax’s games,” the agency says.

It is, of course, worth going back and looking at Microsoft’s public stance in the lead-up to the ZeniMax deal being finalized. Shortly after announcing its intent to purchase the company, Microsoft said that exclusivity for future Bethesda titles would be decided on a case-by-case basis, but that the Xbox ecosystem would remain the best place to play Bethesda games regardless. Shortly afterward, the company said that the purpose of the acquisition was to deliver exclusive Bethesda content “on platforms where Game Pass exists.”

Where Call of Duty is concerned, the company has committed to bringing the franchise to Steam and Nintendo platforms for the next 10 years, while a similar offer is also on the table for PlayStation.

In addition to the FTC’s aforementioned antitrust lawsuit, Microsoft’s proposed $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard is also being scrutinized regulatory authorities in other regions, with the UK and the EU both having expressed concerns over how the deal might impact competition, should it go through.