The past few weeks has seen the heat turned up when it comes to Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard and whether the move is in fact anti-competitive. Amidst all this, head of Xbox Phil Spencer has remained resolute, stating that the console manufacturer will continue to acquire more studios.
In a recent appearance on CNBC (transcribed here), Head of Xbox Phil Spencer was asked about the company’s intentions when it comes to future acquisitions, to which he responded:
“This is such a competitive market. I don't think we get to press pause on anything. Uh you know, Tencent is the largest gaming company on the planet today and they continue to heavily invest in gaming content and game creators. Sony is a larger business than we are in gaming today and they continue to invest.”
Spencer continued, “When you look at the investments that we've made, it's a highly, highly competitive market. We strive to be a major player here. We want to deliver great content for our players and we're going to remain active. Like I said, whether that's investing in our internal teams that are already building great games that people know and love. Whether it's building new partnerships.”
Concluding his thoughts on the console manufacturer’s position, Spencer stated “And if [these partnerships] turn into acquisitive M&A work, we're active there too. So the work for us never ends. It's a competitive market and I want to make sure Xbox is at the forefront of innovation and competition.”
As mentioned, Xbox isn’t the only player active in the market, however in being a console manufacturer, the company’s acquisitions are understandably extra scrutinised – especially due to the scope of an acquisition such as with Activision Blizzard. It will be interesting to see how the market develops.
KitGuru says: What do you think of Spencer’s statement? Do you agree? Will the Activision Blizzard deal go through in the end? Let us know your thoughts down below/