- The FTC has returned with a new court appeal against Xbox.
- It says that Microsoft is selling a degraded product with Game Pass Standard.
- The regulator also argues that Microsoft has gone against its word.
Last week, Microsoft’s subscription service went through major changes. Xbox Game Pass was revamped with a new tier, changes to day-one games, and a price bump for nearly every tier.
However, this change did not go over well with everyone. While fans did not hold back and quickly criticized many of Microsoft’s changes, it seems the FTC has come forward to offer its own criticism. The regulator has referred to these changes as product degradation.
Why it matters: Game Pass certainly looks like a worse deal today. The Ultimate tier now seems like the best option.
In its latest court filing, the FTC has pointed to Microsoft’s recent Game Pass changes as a means to exercise power after the merger. According to the FTC, this is the exact type of anti-competitive behavior it feared.
In the filing, the FTC states that the removal of day-one releases from the basic tier is a major downgrade for the customers. It also argues that Microsoft has removed the most valuable games from its new tier.
Microsoft is introducing a degraded product, Game Pass Standard.
-FTC
For the unaware, the FTC never backed down after the merger was approved. It previously appealed to the court after Xbox’s massive wave of layoffs that impacted nearly 2,000 employees.
The regulator has now returned with another case as it continues to appeal against the merger’s approval.
The FTC also states that Microsoft’s actions are not consistent with its statements in the past. While Call of Duty is still coming to Game Pass, it won’t be part of the standard console tier.
Unfortunately for the FTC, this is unlikely to do much.
The regulator has been unable to make a compelling argument against Xbox for a while. Even if this is one of its more valid arguments, the Activision merger has already been approved for it to make much of a difference.
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