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Xbox Game Pass Will Not Hike Its Price Post-Activision Blizzard Deal

JJ Rankin | Jun 20, 11:39 AM | 6 min read

Game Pass users can heave a sigh of relief! Microsoft does not plan to increase the Xbox Game Pass price if the purchase of Activision Blizzard is approved. A few days ago, A judge granted a request by US regulators to temporarily block Microsoft's $69bn (£56bn) takeover of Activision Blizzard.

But according to Microsoft, the acquisition will not affect the pricing policy of the service. Game Pass has been a game-changer for Microsoft's ambitious gaming strategies since its debut in 2017. Microsoft confirmed that has no plans to immediately raise the price of its Xbox Game Pass subscription service if the merger with Activision is greenlit, even with the added value of Call of Duty games.

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Microsoft Commits To Maintaining Its Xbox Game Pass Prices — For The Time Being

BREAKING: A Temporary Restraining Order was granted to the FTC restricting Microsoft from buying Activision Blizzard, until a ruling on the Preliminary Injunction is made.

The hearing for the Preliminary Injunction starts on June 22, 2023

This is a positive development & speeds… pic.twitter.com/uge6Einc8w
— PeterOvo (808) (@PeterOvo5) June 14, 2023

Microsoft’s decision to not hike up prices comes as a pleasant surprise to fans considering Xbox CEO Phil Spencer indicated last year that Microsoft could eventually raise the price of the Xbox Game Pass subscription to keep up with rising games industry costs. “Here, the acquisition would benefit consumers by making Call of Duty available on Microsoft’s Game Pass on the day it is released on console (with no price increase for the service based on the acquisition), on Nintendo, and on other services that allow cloud streaming,” mentions the document filed in court by the brand regarding their service.

The hearing to determine the fate of the deal is likely to take place between June 23 and 24. Though the acquisition has been approved by more than 40 countries, the United Kingdom has blocked the deal as it believes that it can lead to Microsoft enjoying a monopoly in the cloud gaming industry. Right now Xbox Game Pass offers two tiers: The base tier which costs $10 a month and the Ultimate which is priced at $15 a month and includes bonuses like EA titles and cloud streaming.