Xbox Games Will Be Available On Nvidia's Cloud Gaming Service‍

Microsoft announced on Tuesday that its Xbox PC titles will be available on Nvidia's cloud gaming service.

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The declaration follows Microsoft President Brad Smith's Tuesday meeting with representatives of the European Union in an effort to persuade them that the company's proposed $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard will be beneficial for competition. Microsoft is battling to prevent the acquisition from being stopped.

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At a press conference, Microsoft President Brad Smith announced that starting immediately, its Xbox titles will be accessible on Nvidia's GeForce Now cloud gaming service. According to Smith, all Activision Blizzard games will be available on GeForce Now if the Activision deal is finalized.

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In January 2022, Microsoft proposed buying Activision Blizzard for $69 billion, but since then, regulators in the United States, the European Union, and the United Kingdom have objected.

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The European Commission, the executive branch of the EU, launched a thorough inquiry into the agreement in November, citing worries that it may restrict competition in the video game sector.

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Call of Duty is a well-known video game brand created by Activision. When the contract was announced, the EU commission expressed worry that Microsoft would restrict access to the game on rival platforms.

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In addition, the commission worries that it would offer Microsoft an unfair advantage in the still-emerging market for cloud gaming. Microsoft offers a service called Game Pass that costs consumers $9.99 to access a selection of video games. With Activision in control, Game Pass would have access to some well-known titles.

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When the Activision merger complete, Microsoft indicated in December that it will "engaged into a 10-year commitment" to bring Call of Duty to Nintendo. The announcement was interpreted as an attempt to allay antitrust officials' worries. To bring Call of Duty to Nintendo fans on the same day as Microsoft's Xbox, Smith tweeted on Tuesday that the two parties had now inked a "binding 10-year legal agreement," "with full feature and content parity."

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According to Trade Algo, Smith led a group on Tuesday that also included the CEOs of Microsoft Gaming and Activision, Phil Spencer and Robert Kotick. The news source cited a document from the European Commission that it had access to. James Ryan, head of gaming at Sony, was also present, according to Trade Algo. The largest competitor of Microsoft, Sony, opposes the acquisition of Activision.

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When approached by Trade Algo, Sony was unavailable to comment right away.

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Not just European regulators are troubled by the agreement.

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Last month, the U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) stated that the acquisition raises concerns about competition and could lead to higher pricing, fewer options, and less innovation. The regulator said it could take action to halt the transaction.

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The United States of America In an effort to stop the Activision merger, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed an antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft.

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Microsoft has insisted that its acquisition of Activision will boost competition rather than lessen it among major companies like Sony and Chinese behemoth Tencent.

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Microsoft continues to lag behind companies like Sony and Nintendo in the video game industry. Nintendo Switch and Sony's PlayStation 5 have outperformed Microsoft's Xbox. The several popular first-party games produced by Sony and Nintendo have contributed to their success. With the acquisition of Activision, Microsoft hopes to expand its selection of video games.