The United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC) continues its attempts to challenge Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard. On July 18, it supplemented its appeal with a statement criticizing the increase in Game Pass prices and the addition of a tier that excludes games at launch.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
The FTC called the revamped subscription a "degrading product." It pointed out that the changes to Game Pass are occurring just before the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, with the new Call of Duty being available only in the most expensive subscription tier. The commission reminded that it had warned about such a development in case of the Microsoft and Activision Blizzard merger.
"Rising prices and declining product quality from Microsoft, coupled with reduced investments in quality product manufacturing due to employee layoffs, are signs of a company that is abusing its market position after the merger," the FTC stated.