We do not know yet how Microsoft will handle the Activision Blizzard franchises after acquiring the company yesterday. As the deal isn't expected to be finalised for quite some time, it could take up to 18 months, Activision Blizzard is still an independent company that Microsoft has no say over whatsoever.
We assume Microsoft will have a similar stance to exclusive games as with Bethesda, meaning Xbox and PC Game Pass will get a lot of exclusives, while legacy games and live service titles will still be supported for other platforms. The biggest question for most gamers is specifically Call of Duty and whether it will be coming to PlayStation consoles in the future.
Just the threat of it not coming at all to PlayStation, or the fact that likely better versions will be released at no extra cost for people with Game Pass, has caused Sony shares to take a major hit. As reported by Bloomberg, no less than $20 billion (13%) has been wiped off Sony's market value in only a day.
This is the biggest hit the company stock has taken since 2008. The analyst Amir Anvarzadeh from Asymmetric Advisors had this to say regarding Sony's market decrease:
"Sony will have a monumental challenge on its hands to stand on its own in this war of attrition. With Call of Duty now most likely to be added exclusively to the Game Pass roster, the headwinds for Sony are only going to get tougher."
Another analyst called Kazunori Ito from Morningstar Research added:
"Sony will struggle to match Microsoft in terms of money it can spend to buy popular game IP. Falling shares illustrate investors are worried that Sony may not be able to keep winning if indeed the industry shifts away from the hardware-based model."