Microsoft to acquire Activision Blizzard

Microsoft is acquiring Activision, the troubled publisher of Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, and Diablo. The deal will value Activision at $68.7 billion, far in excess of the $26 billion Microsoft paid to acquire LinkedIn in 2016. It’s Microsoft’s biggest push into gaming, and the company says it will be the “third-largest gaming company by revenue, behind Tencent and Sony” once the deal closes. Microsoft plans to add many of Activision’s games to Xbox Game Pass once the deal closes. With the acquisition of Activision, Microsoft will soon publish franchises like Warcraft, Diablo, Overwatch, Call of Duty, and Candy Crush. “Upon close, we will offer as many Activision Blizzard games as we can within Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass, both new titles and games from Activision Blizzard’s incredible catalog,” says Microsoft’s CEO of gaming Phil Spencer. Xbox Game Pass now has 25 million subscribers, as Microsoft continues to acquire studios to boost the subscription service. “We’re investing deeply in world-class content, community and the cloud to usher in a new era of gaming that puts players and creators first and makes gaming safe, inclusive and accessible to all,” says Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Microsoft’s deal comes after months of sexual harassment claims against Activision Blizzard. Last July, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) sued Activision Blizzard for promoting a culture of “constant sexual harassment.”

More employees have come forward with more allegations of sexual misconduct ever since, and the company reached an $18 million settlement with the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in September. That settlement is being appealed, and reports indicate that nearly 40 Activision Blizzard employees have reportedly “exited” the company since last July. Microsoft doesn’t detail exactly how it will approach solving these issues, and the company says Bobby Kotick will continue to serve as CEO of Activision Blizzard for now. It looks like Kotick won’t remain once the deal is fully closed and after the transition period to Microsoft, though. Spencer, formerly head of gaming at Microsoft, is now CEO of Microsoft Gaming, and the company says the Activision Blizzard business will report directly to Spencer. “As a company, Microsoft is committed to our journey for inclusion in every aspect of gaming, among both employees and players,” says Spencer. “We deeply value individual studio cultures. We also believe that creative success and autonomy go hand-in-hand with treating every person with dignity and respect. We hold all teams, and all leaders, to this commitment. We’re looking forward to extending our culture of proactive inclusion to the great teams across Activision Blizzard.” Microsoft’s huge Activision Blizzard deal comes nearly a year after the company acquired Bethesda (ZeniMax Media) for $7.5 billion. At the time, that acquisition bolstered the company’s first-party Xbox game studios to a total of 23 and was seen as a huge boost for Xbox Game Pass. Microsoft now expects the Activision Blizzard deal “to close in fiscal year 2023,” which means we might not see this deal approved for up to 18 months. That’s a long period of time for a deal to close, but Activision Blizzard operates in a number of markets which could make regulatory approval more complicated for Microsoft.

Microsoft Brings Back Xbox Design Lab With 19 New Colors

After bringing back the fan-favorite Xbox Design Lab earlier this year, Microsoft is now enhancing the custom controller experience with even more colors and finishes to choose from. Overall, different controller parts can now be dressed in “Dragonfly Blue,” and both “Military Green” and “Electric Green” have been updated to “Nocturnal Green” and “Velocity Green” respectively.

 

For those looking for a touch of flair, you’ll now also be able to customize your D-Pads and Triggers will 19 new metallic finishes, including “Sterling Silver,” “Pewter Silver,” “Gunmetal Silver,” “Abyss Black,” “Retro Pink,” “Deep Pink,” “Oxide Red,” “Zest Orange,” “Gold,” “Electric Volt,” “Velocity Green,” “Glacier Blue,” “Dragonfly Blue,” “Mineral Blue,” “Photon Blue,” “Midnight Blue,” “Regal Purple,” “Nocturnal Green” and “Warm Gold.” On top of all these new shades, Microsoft is also bringing back black rubberized grips for both the back case as well as side grips so you’ll get that extra bit of comfort and control during your competitive sessions. For those interested, you can design your own Xbox controller over at Xbox Design Lab’s website now, with prices starting at $70 USD.

Windows 11 Will Be Able To Sideload Android Application

According to an engineer at Microsoft, Windows 11 users will have the ability to sideload Android apps onto the operating system, which looks like an answer to one of the biggest questions we had when Microsoft announced it was bringing Android apps to Windows 11 via the Amazon Appstore (via Android Police). This means that once Windows 11 launches, you won’t just have to stick to the apps that Amazon makes available, but it does raise some new questions about how running Android apps on Windows will work.

For example, it’s unclear what the process for running or installing a sideloaded app will be. Chrome OS technically has the ability to run sideloaded apps, too, but the process isn’t exactly easy, as it involves enabling Linux and doing some command line work. We asked Microsoft for details about what running Android apps from outside the Amazon Appstore would be like, and it provided us with the following statement: Customers will be able to discover Android apps on the Microsoft Store and acquire them through the Amazon Appstore. We’ll have more to share at a later date.

It’s possible that the desire for sideloading apps onto Windows wouldn’t be as strong had Microsoft included Google’s Play Store instead of Amazon’s Appstore. While having any app store will obviously grant Windows users access to many programs that they couldn’t previously run on their computers, Amazon’s has some notable omissions from its catalog. If a Windows user wanted to run the Android version of Snapchat or Apple Music, they wouldn’t be able to get them from Amazon. While sideloading apps helps solve this problem, it does raise concerns of its own. The first is the question of where users will obtain those apps: while there aren’t likely to be piracy concerns with free apps like Snapchat, the ability to load an APK could allow people to get paid apps for free from less-than-legal repositories.

There’s also the question of safety and whether Windows will have the ability to scan sideloaded apps for potentially malicious behavior, a feature that Google builds into Android already. While it’s clear that there’s still a lot that Microsoft hasn’t covered about what running Android apps on Windows 11’s will actually be like (though the technical details it’s revealed are fascinating), it’s still good to have confirmation from someone at Microsoft that the selection of Android apps won’t just be limited to what’s on Amazon’s Appstore. Hopefully Microsoft will start sharing more details on exactly how Android apps will work soon so it can get feedback from both Windows users and Android developers before the feature becomes available for everyone, likely later this year.

Microsoft Looks Ready To Launch Windows 11

After teasing the next generation of Windows during Build last week, Microsoft announced that it'll officially unveil the new version of its operating system on June 24th at 11AM Eastern. The company has begun sending out invites to media, and it's revealed that CEO Satya Nadella and chief product officer Panos Panay will be headlining the event. At Build, Nadella said he's been testing the new OS for the past few months. He added, "We will create more opportunity for every Windows developer today and welcome every creator who is looking for the most innovative, new, open platform to build and distribute and monetize applications." That's likely referring to rumors of an update Windows Store, which could make it easier for developers to push their apps out to consumers. The event announcement follows news that Microsoft killed development of Windows 10X, an OS variant that was initially meant for dual-screen devices.

Last year, the company shifted 10X focus to single screen devices to potentially create a stronger competitor to Chrome OS. Now, Microsoft plans to bring some 10X features into Windows 10 proper. So where can Microsoft go next after Windows 10? When it launched in 2015, I noted that it was a great combination of the best features from Windows 7 and 8. It had the clean desktop of the former, with additional touchscreen smarts from the latter (thankfully, the Start Menu also made a return). Windows 10 was also the first major sign of how different Microsoft was under Nadella, who took up the CEO mantle from Steve Ballmer in 2014. Notably, he announced that Windows 10 would be free for a year (and even longer for some users), a massive turnabout from Microsoft's previous strategy of charging for every new release. By doing so, Nadella encouraged users to move on from Windows 7 and 8, making Windows 10 a more viable platform for developers who wanted to build modern apps. I'd wager Microsoft would put much of Windows 10X's dual-screen features into its next OS. We've yet to see many truly dual-screen PCs, aside from Lenovo's clunky Yoga Books, so the door is wide open for Microsoft to encourage more PC makers to make that leap. The company also clearly needs to work on Windows support for ARM devices, as its current OS holds back flagship hardware like the Surface Pro X. Now that Apple has successfully moved its computers to ARM-based M1 chips, the ball is in Microsoft's court to help PC makers do the same.

Microsoft Surface Pro X Reportedly Getting New Processor, Colour Option

 Microsoft Surface Pro X, the company's ARM-powered tablet, is reportedly getting a refresh with an upgraded Microsoft SQ2 processor, a new platinum colour option, and new Type Cover colours. The updated version is expected to launch in October this year, and Microsoft reportedly aims at pushing the Surface Pro X to the mainstream market with the new processor, hue variant, and accessories. The original Surface Pro X debuted last year and the upgraded version seems to be coming right on time.

In a report, Windows Central cited sources that the Microsoft Surface Pro X will soon start shipping with the company's latest SQ2 processor. This is a significant upgrade from the SQ1 chip that powered the earlier Surface Pro X model. It is being speculated that the new SQ2 chip is based on Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen2 SoC that promises to offer a notable boost in performance.

The report also suggests that Microsoft is planning to announce x86 64-bit app-emulation. As of now, the ARM version of Windows 10 can only emulate 32-bit apps. Given the improved performance of the SQ2 chip, the 64-bit app-emulation could boost demand for the Surface Pro X.

Apart from the new chip, the Surface Pro X could also be getting a platinum colour option, similar to the one already available on the regular Surface Pro offerings. Currently, the Surface Pro X is only available in a black colour option. The Surface Pro X Type Covers are also reportedly getting colour variants similar to the regular Surface Pro Type Covers. With the new colours and accessories, the report suggests that the tech giant plans to promote the Surface Pro X as “ready for mainstream.”

The report also points out that there are no significant design changes in the refreshed Surface Pro X variant.

Microsoft Surface Pro X price in India

The Surface Pro X is currently available in two storage variants in India. The 8GB + 128GB storage option is priced at Rs. 98,990. On the other hand, the 8GB + 256GB storage variant carries a price tag of Rs. 1,43,950.

Microsoft Surface Pro X specifications

The Surface Pro X is touted as the company's thinnest and lightest 2-in-1 device to date. With a thickness of 7.3mm, it weighs only 774 grams. It features a 13-inch display with a resolution of 2,880x1,920 pixels and an aspect ratio of 3:2. It boasts of a battery life of up to 13 hours, with support for fast charging. The compatible Surface Pro X Signature Keyboard and Surface Slim Pen are sold separately.

Microsoft Said to Be in Talks to Acquire TikTok in the US as Ad Business Flattens Out

Microsoft could reenergise its advertising business with a huge supply of video if it follows through on acquiring TikTok's US operations from ByteDance. Reuters reported on Friday, citing a source familiar with the matter, that Microsoft is in exploratory deal talks as the US government prepares to force China-based ByteDance to divest its video app TikTok over data security concerns.

Microsoft generates the bulk of its $143 billion (roughly Rs. 10.71 lakh crores) in annual revenue by licensing software such as Windows and Office as well as cloud storage and computing tools through its Azure service.

The company, with advertising supported businesses including its Bing search engine, MSN news service, and LinkedIn business social network, disclosed this month that its search ads sales grew 1 percent to $7.7 billion (roughly Rs. 57,696 crores) over the last year. But that growth was flat when excluding fees it pays to partner websites and apps.

The ad market research company eMarketer has estimated LinkedIn's ad revenue at about $2 billion annually in the United States alone. But Microsoft also said this month LinkedIn ads sales have fallen this year as the novel coronavirus pandemic prompted advertisers to pare spending.

Social media services, including Facebook and Alphabet's YouTube, have seen their sales growth continue during the pandemic as users spend more time entertaining themselves online - particularly with video - and advertisers follow them there.

Without an entertainment service aimed at a broad audience, Microsoft has struggled to capture the increasingly lucrative videos flowing to YouTube, Facebook, and more recently TikTok, which widely opened its ad tools this month.

Increased US regulatory scrutiny of potentially anticompetitive behaviour by Facebook and YouTube have likely diminished their ability to purchase a major competitor soon, according to antitrust experts. Microsoft, though, faces fewer constraints.

"Its consumer strategy remains in flux and an aggressive acquisition (or strategic investment) of TikTok would be Microsoft throwing its hat in the ring and trying to compete with other tech giants in a new avenue of growth," Wedbush financial analyst Dan Ives said in a statement on Friday.