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Sony accuses Microsoft of 'obvious harassment' in ongoing legal dispute

Sony has called out Microsoft's behavior during its battle over the pending Activision Blizzard deal.

Donovan Erskine

February 10, 2023 9:25 AM

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Microsoft’s attempt to acquire video game giant Activision Blizzard has drawn the ire of several government bodies and other major corporations, including its largest rival, Sony. As Sony looks to get the deal blocked, both parties have been fighting to defend their stance, which means subpoenaing old documents and revealing private information. As the battle goes on, Sony has called out some of Microsoft’s behavior during the ordeal, describing it as harassment.

Earlier this week, Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick accused Sony of trying to sabotage Microsoft’s attempt to acquire the company. Now, Sony has clapped back with a statement of its own, calling out Microsoft. In a new FTX filing, which we spotted thanks to Axios, Sony states "Microsoft’s demand for performance reviews for SIE’s leadership is obvious harassment." The company goes onto explain that "even in employment cases courts require a specific showing of relevance before requiring production of personnel files," and that the FTC suit against Microsoft is not an employment case.

The judge handling the case saw the points that Sony was getting at in its filing. With that, they've ordered that Microsoft’s request for performance reviews of Sony executives be dismissed. Furthermore, Microsoft has been restricted to only requesting documents from January 1, 2019, to January 17, 2023. These documents are also limited, and can only pertain to a small handful of Sony leaders.

It’s been more than a year since Microsoft announced its plans to acquire Activision Blizzard, and it continues to be met with hard legal resistance to those plans. Another wrinkle was added to the situation today when reports alleged that if the deal doesn’t go through, Bobby Kotick will remain the CEO of Activision Blizzard. For further updates on Microsoft’s attempt to acquire Activision Blizzard, stick with Shacknews.

Donovan Erskine

News Editor

Donovan is a young journalist from Maryland, who likes to game. His oldest gaming memory is playing Pajama Sam on his mom's desktop during weekends. Pokémon Emerald, Halo 2, and the original Star Wars Battlefront 2 were some of the most influential titles in awakening his love for video games. After interning for Shacknews throughout college, Donovan graduated from Bowie State University in 2020 with a major in broadcast journalism and joined the team full-time. He is a huge Scream nerd and film fanatic that will talk with you about movies and games all day. You can follow him on twitter @Donimals_