It’s been claimed by Insider Gaming sources that Jim Ryan, CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment, has implied that the company doesn’t view Xbox Game Pass as competition, despite the company expressing concerns about Microsoft’s proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
One source, who wishes to remain anonymous because they couldn’t speak about their knowledge of the information publically has said that Jim Ryan had an employee Q&A earlier this month, where he talked about market competition.
In response to a question about Xbox Game Pass, Jim Ryan reportedly said that “When we consider Game Pass, it seems to be getting lower [Game Pass numbers]. When we consider Game Pass, we’ve sold more PS5’s in two years than they have gathered subscribers and they’ve been doing that for 6-7 years.”
Ryan reportedly continued “We’re just shy of 50 million subscribers and they are in the low 20s, but there’s more work to do to grow that number”.
Ryan’s reported comments are somewhat surprising when the company is currently battling Microsoft’s proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard, which Sony argues is “bad for competition, bad for the gaming industry, and bad for gamers themselves”, (via Reuters).
Sony’s concerns have led the UK’s Competition Markets Authority (CMA) to investigate the acquisition, as well as the FTC trying to block the deal.
In response to the concerns, Microsoft offered Nintendo, Steam, and Sony a 10-year deal to keep Call of Duty on their respective platforms and said that several popular titles will remain on the PlayStation platform forever.
Microsoft anticipates that the deal will be finalized in 2023, but nothing is yet guaranteed.
What do you think of alleged Sony’s comments on Xbox Game Pass?
For more Insider Gaming news, check out our coverage of the new God of War television series, coming soon.
