Xbox offered PlayStation 10-year deal to keep Call Of Duty, says insider

Unless you’ve been sleeping under a rock, you’re probably aware that Microsoft is in the midst of acquiring Activision. It’s a deal that’s left PlayStation worrying about the future of Call of Duty and you can understand why they’re feeling that way. Last month’s release of Modern Warfare II officially marked the most successful Call of Duty launch of all time. Who isn’t going to want a slice of that pie?

It’s something Microsoft and Sony have been bickering over all year. First, Microsoft claimed that making CoD an Xbox-exclusive “wouldn’t be profitable,” but later admitted they’d wait “several years” before making a decision. More recently, Xbox boss Phil Spencer reassured PlayStation that CoD would remain accessible but now that promise has reportedly been turned into a formal deal.

In a statement to The Verge, Spencer confirmed that a deal had been signed with Sony earlier this year which agreed to include CoD on PlayStation consoles for “at least several more years.” Spencer said, “In January, we provided a signed agreement to Sony to guarantee Call of Duty on PlayStation, with feature and content parity, for at least several more years beyond the current Sony contract, an offer that goes well beyond typical gaming industry agreements.”

This is where it gets a bit sticky. PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan claimed the deal was only set for three years, but a new New York Times report now says that Microsoft has offered PlayStation access to Call of Duty for the next 10 years instead. The NYT wrote, “Microsoft said that on Nov. 11 it offered Sony a 10-year deal to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation. Sony declined to comment on the offer.”