Microsoft Subpoenas Sony in an Attempt to Defend against FTC Lawsuit

Microsoft has recently issued a subpoena to Sony Interactive Entertainment as it prepares to face the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in court this summer.

The tech giant is reportedly seeking information on the scope of Sony's game production to build a defense against the FTC, which filed a lawsuit against Microsoft in December 2022 as it assumed that Microsoft's control of Activision's games might "suppress competition from rival consoles."

Apparently, Microsoft believes that by obtaining information from Sony, it can prove to the FTC that a competitor has a large line of games which means that the company will not be affected by the deal with Activision Blizzard.

According to a recent filing in the case, Microsoft served a subpoena to Sony Interactive Entertainment on January 17. The initial response deadline for this subpoena was set for January 20, however, on that same day, Sony requested an extension for their response, pushing the deadline to January 27. 

The filing also notes that Microsoft and Sony are currently in negotiations about the information that the PlayStation maker will provide. It is unlikely that Sony will agree to disclose confidential information, especially since it has publicly and consistently objected to the Microsoft/Activision merger.

The negotiations are set to nail down what the company is willing to disclose, but it remains to be seen whether Sony will agree to provide any information.