Despite many publishers engaging meaningfully with games content subscription services, Activision Blizzard has remained largely inactive in the space. Under Microsoft’s leadership, however, this is likely to change.

Success of premium underlies a lack of prior subscription activity

As of January 2022, Activision Blizzard had only two titles available across three separate games content subscription services: PlayStation Now, Game Pass for PC, and Game Pass Ultimate. These are older, catalogue titles from the Activision side, rather than  more high-profile IP such as Call of Duty. Call of Duty: Black Ops III was available to PlayStation Now subscribers in Spring of 2021, but left the service after just three months. Given the scale and profitability of the Call of Duty franchise, driven by premium full games, it is perhaps no surprise that Activision had so far decided not to list any titles in Xbox Game Pass. Compared with other big, global publishers, however, Activision Blizzard is virtually inactive in the content subscription space.

There was also evidence that Activision Blizzard had been collaborating more closely with Sony: Call of Duty: Warzone users on PlayStation had previously been given access to benefits such as extra loadouts, an exclusive zombie mode, and a 10% experience bonus for those playing with other PlayStation users.

Market shift to on-demand model necessitates new publisher strategies

In order to scale its business as the games market shifts towards on-demand models like subscription, Activision Blizzard needed to assess its options. Developing a streaming proposition would have entailed partnering with a third-party cloud service provider, and the publisher probably lacks the breadth and frequency of content to deliver a compelling direct-to-consumer offering. Microsoft, however, can offer its Azure cloud capability in conjunction with a commercially viable structure for the distribution of Activision Blizzard’s content. The publisher will see its catalogue exposed to broader audiences; the benefits are clear.