ACTIVISION BLIZZARD CLOUD GAME STREAMING IN THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AREA

On October 13, 2023, Microsoft finalized its acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Inc. and officially welcomed Activision Blizzard and their teams to Microsoft Gaming. Activision Blizzard publishes some of the most played and most beloved franchises in gaming. From Pitfall to Call of Duty and World of Warcraft to Overwatch, their studios have pushed the boundaries of gaming for players around the world.

In line with the commitments Microsoft made to the European Commission (the “Commitments”) covering the European Economic Area (“EEA”), Microsoft will provide free licenses to enable cloud streaming services to stream Activision Blizzard games to EEA consumers that have already bought those games or will buy these or future Activision Blizzard games. These Commitments will expand the universe of games available via cloud streaming services in the region, benefiting European consumers while safeguarding competition in this dynamic and evolving space. We will also update our license terms for consumers to clarify that they are authorized to stream these games.

OUR COMMITMENTS TO THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION

As of October 13, 2023, as per the Commitments to the European Commission, Microsoft is making available:

  1. “a free license to consumers in the EEA that would allow them to stream, via any cloud game streaming services of their choice all current and future Activision Blizzard PC and console games for which they have a license”, and
  2. “a corresponding free license to cloud game streaming service providers to allow EEA-based gamers to stream any Activision Blizzard’s PC and console games.”

The restructured transaction that Microsoft submitted to the UK Competition and Markets Authority does not impact these Commitments and the free licenses granted already to some cloud streaming providers. While Microsoft’s obligations under the EC Commitments last for ten years, any license taken by a consumer or cloud streaming provider during this period will endure perpetually.

EEA CONSUMER LICENSE

As of October 13, the following EEA Consumer License language is effective with respect to all relevant end user terms covering all Activision Blizzard games (so-called Eligible Games, see below):

“As an integral part of its End User License Agreement (EULA), Microsoft agrees to allow Consumers to play, solely for their personal use, Eligible Games on a Streaming Service on any device that they own, as defined in and pursuant to the Commitments entered into by Microsoft and made legally binding by the European Commission in its decision under Article 8(2) of Regulation (EC) 139/2004 in case M. 10646 - Microsoft/Activision Blizzard.”

STREAMING PROVIDER LICENSE FOR CLOUD GAME STREAMING PROVIDERS

As of October 13, Microsoft is offering a free Streaming Provider License under the following terms:

“Microsoft licenses its rights under a non-exclusive, non-transferable, non-sublicensable license to Eligible Streaming Services to stream Eligible Games for the sole benefit of Consumers in accordance with the Consumer License, as defined in and pursuant to the Commitments entered into by Microsoft and made legally binding by the European Commission in its decision under Article 8(2) of Regulation (EC) 139/2004 in case M. 10646 -Microsoft/Activision Blizzard.”

For streaming providers looking to take advantage of the streaming provider license, as well as obtain access to entitlement data for Eligible Games, please visit this link.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Under the terms of the above Consumer License and Streaming Provider License, the following definitions apply, as per the Commitments:

“Consumers” include consumers based in the EEA who are licensed to play Eligible Games for their personal use pursuant to the Consumer License.

“Eligible Games” include all current and future PC and console franchises, titles in these PC and console franchises, and any other PC and console games that (i) have been developed in the past or will be developed in the future, either in part or in full, by any of the Activision Blizzard Studios (as listed in Annex 1 of the Commitments); or (ii) are based, either in part or in full, on IP rights of any PC or console franchises, titles in these PC or console franchises, and any other PC or console games that Activision Blizzard Studios have developed in the past or will develop in the future. In case there are different versions of a PC game for different operating systems, each of these versions are Eligible Games. For the avoidance of doubt, the definition of Eligible Games further includes all additional content that is being made available for Eligible Games, such as add-ons, download content or in-game purchases.

“Eligible Streaming Service” includes a Streaming Service which currently provides or intends to provide cloud game streaming services to Consumers, irrespective of the Streaming Service’s business model, and either: (i) is permitted by an Authorized Game Store to provide access to Eligible Games including Streaming Services that are granted access in accordance with para. 5 of the Commitments; or (ii) offers access to Eligible Games through applications which do not require integration with an Authorized Game Store, including by checking for a license via APIs.

“Authorized Game Store” includes a Microsoft Game Store or a third-party digital PC or console game store on which Microsoft distributes, including via a multi-game subscription service, Eligible Games after the Closing Date.

“Streaming Service” includes a cloud game streaming service that allows Consumers to play, from the service provider’s cloud-based servers, PC or console games for which the Consumers have already obtained a license for the game (including through either buy-to-play, free-to-play, or subscription).

The full text of the Commitments can be found on the European Commission’s website (here). The summary of the Commitments is available in the European Commission’s press release, available here.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

For more information on Microsoft's cloud gaming commitments in the European Economic Area, visit the FAQ.