FTC blasts Microsoft’s new ‘degraded’ Xbox Game Pass Standard tier and price increases

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has blasted Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass value increases in a filing to nan US Court of Appeals for nan Ninth Circuit. Microsoft revealed past week that it’s increasing PC Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate prices, and readying to motorboat a caller Game Pass Standard tier soon without time 1 entree to first-party Xbox games.

The FTC calls this caller Game Pass Standard tier a “degraded product,” because caller Game Pass users won’t beryllium capable to motion up to nan $10.99 Game Pass for Console, which includes time 1 crippled access. Instead, Xbox Game Pass Standard will beryllium priced astatine $14.99 and won’t see time 1 games, but will see online multiplayer.

“Microsoft’s value increases and merchandise degradation — mixed pinch Microsoft’s reduced investments successful output and merchandise value via worker layoffs — are nan hallmarks of a patient exercising marketplace powerfulness post-merger,” says FTC successful a filing today. “Product degradation — removing nan astir valuable games from Microsoft’s caller work — mixed pinch value increases for existing users, is precisely nan benignant of user harm from nan merger nan FTC has alleged.”

The filing is portion of an ongoing entreaty lodged by nan FTC against a district court’s determination not to block Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard acquisition past year. Microsoft finalized its $68.7 cardinal woody successful October, but nan Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals still hasn’t ruled connected nan FTC’s entreaty yet.