Sony Slumps Most in 13 Years as Microsoft Goes for Call of Duty

Sony (T:6758) stock plunged the most in 13 years in Tokyo trading Wednesday as traders tried to calculate the impact that Microsoft’s (NASDAQ:MSFT) acquisition of Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ:ATVI) will have on the maker of PlayStations.

The stock closed nearly 13% down in Tokyo while the NYSE-listed shares (NYSE:SONY) traded 5% lower premarket.

While Sony’s PlayStation leads Microsoft’s Xbox in the gaming market for consoles, the acquisition of the video games publisher hands Microsoft a formidable library of titles such as Warcraft, Overwatch, Diablo and Candy Crush.

Sony and Microsoft, two of the world’s dominant console makers, accounted for 17% and 11% of Activision’s 2020 revenue, making them its largest and fourth largest customer, respectively, according to a filing.

Any attempt by Microsoft to remove titles from Sony’s system will be a complex exercise and could invite charges of being anti-competitive. At the same time, the industry’s biggest acquisition indicates Microsoft’s commitment to a play in the metaverse, a so-called ecosystem where people come to interact, play, watch and study online.

In the all-cash offer announced Tuesday, Microsoft said it will buy the ‘Call of Duty’-owner for $68.7 billion. The deal values each Activision share at $95. The stock of the video games publisher closed at $82.31 in the previous session, nearly 26% higher.