Follow us on Google News
Get the latest updates directly in your Google News feed
Activision is getting into trouble as theCall of Dutylawsuit involving two esports professionals, Hector Rodriguez and Seth Abner, could cost them $680 Million in damages. The case alleges the company holds an “unlawful 100 % monopoly” overCoDleagues and tournaments. The “lucrative and once-vibrant market” is now bulwarked by the company, preventing other entities from entering the market.
Hector Rodriguez is the founder of the esports and gaming organization OpTic Gaming. Furthermore, Seth Abner is a formerCoDplayer who played for OpTic Texas, a subsidiary of Hector’s company.Call of DutyLeague (CDL), the case’s central focus, is currently owned and operated by Activision.
Activision’s Practices Are Cutting Gamer’s Revenue
Plaintiffs in the case are alleging that the teams taking part in CDL are co-conspirators allowing the company to shed monopoly in the market. The company capped the tournament at 12 teams after announcing CDL as “a closed league” in 2019. This “coerced” the participating teams to pay a hefty fee of $27.5 Million just for entering the tournament. “Activision forced them to agree to contractual terms”according to the court document.
Activision Blizzard Games are Coming to Xbox Game Pass
Rodriguez claims this practice led him into a “financially devastating” partnership where the investors demanded over 90 percent share in his company. Available data shows the company has a valuation of $99 Million. According to an Activision spokesperson, both the plaintiffs demanded the company to pay “tens of millions of dollars to avoid this meritless litigation” and went ahead with filing when their demands weren’t met.
Fear of Companies Shedding Monopoly is Real
Last year, theCoDpublisher was acquired by Microsoft for a whopping $69 Billion. The deal was originallyannounced in January 2022but faced legal hindrances before it was finalized. Following this, the Widows bearer laid1,900 employees from Activision, most of them from its esports division.
After a Worrying Period, Microsoft’s Stock Looks Safe for Now After Xbox Announcement
CoDpublisheracquired Major League Gaming in 2016which, according to the lawsuit, eliminated “Activision’s most significant competitive threat in the professional Call of Duty market — without any FTC approval.” Like in this, Microsoft’s acquisition ofCoDpublisher had to face a similar situation.
It was speculated that Microsoft’s move would shift a majority of gaming market share in their favor, creating a monopoly. Nonetheless, the deal was later supported by key markets including South Korea, the United Kingdom, Europe, and more.
Where do you think the CDL lawsuit is moving? Tell us in the comments.
Anurag Batham
Gaming Journalist
Articles Published :425
Anurag Batham is a video games correspondent at FandomWire. With over two years of experience in writing for different industries, his past works show his passion for the metaverse and his awareness of the environment. He’s always playing with ideas to turn them into captivating stories.A gaming enthusiast who can prove it when you have a round of Call of Duty (COD) with him. And it may take more than a coffee with him if you are to talk to him about Marvel. One can find a reader in him who’s always keen to perfect what he already knows and to learn everything new.
More from Anurag Batham
Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero May Be the Best Budokai Tenkaichi, but It Fumbled With Some Series Staple Features
Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero – How to Unlock Branching Paths During Frieza Revived (Frieza’s Saga)
Gohan Black’s Sparking Zero Debut Proves Why It’s the Greatest Dragon Ball Game Ever Made
Recommended
Fact Check: Has Activision Announced Call of Duty: Black Ops Remastered?
The Batman 2 May Get Its Worst Update That Will Affect Its Shot at The Oscar
Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle Beats MCU’s Lowest-Grossing Film as Story & Animation Outshine Star Power
Ballad of a Small Player: Everything We Know About the Colin Farrell Movie
These 5 Monster Horror Shows Are Like Alien: Earth, but Better
Brandon Sanderson’s ‘Isles of the Emberdark’ Ending Explained
ActivisionCall of DutyeSports
