Xbox Offering 10-Year Contract to Keep Call of Duty on PlayStation

Microsoft made huge waves this year when the company announced its intention to purchase Activision Blizzard. It remains to be seen whether the deal will be approved by regulators, but there are a lot of concerns regarding the Call of Duty franchise. Many fans are concerned that the series could become exclusive to Xbox platforms, abandoning PlayStation as a result. In a new opinion piece for the Wall Street Journal, Microsoft president Brad Smith said taking the series away from PlayStation would be "economically irrational." He also stated that Microsoft will offer a contract to keep the series on PlayStation for 10 years.

"Given the popularity of cross-play, it would also be disastrous to the 'Call of Duty' franchise and Xbox itself, alienating millions of gamers," wrote Smith. "That's why we've offered Sony a 10-year contract to make each new 'Call of Duty' release available on PlayStation the same day it comes to Xbox. We're open to providing the same commitment to other platforms and making it legally enforceable by regulators in the U.S., U.K. and European Union."

It's unclear whether the contract will be enough to satisfy regulators and PlayStation, but Smith does raise a good point. Microsoft has maintained all along its intent to continue releasing Call of Duty games on PlayStation, and making it exclusive to one platform could easily backfire. A legally enforceable 10-year contract would ensure that no one has to worry about the series going exclusive for a very long time. If things prove successful enough, it's also possible Microsoft could re-up the contract.

Smith went on to detail how the purchase would actually increase competition in the video game industry, allowing Microsoft to better compete with "Sony's dominant PlayStation and the Nintendo Switch." Of course, that all hinges on whether regulators choose to approve the deal, and we won't know more until March 2023 at the earliest. For now, Call of Duty fans will just have to wait and see how this all plays out.

Do you think this contract will help the deal go through? Are you worried about Call of Duty becoming an Xbox exclusive? Let us know in the comments or share your thoughts directly on Twitter and on Hive at @Marcdachamp to talk all things gaming!

[H/T: CNBC]