Microsoft’s recent mega-deal with Activision Blizzard is shaking up the gaming industry, and one crucial aspect of this partnership is Ubisoft’s acquisition of cloud streaming rights for Call of Duty and other current and future Activision Blizzard titles. This move played a pivotal role in gaining approval from UK regulators. But what exactly does this mean for gamers around the world?

Ubisoft is now in control of where Call of Duty and other Activision Blizzard games will be available on cloud gaming services, with a few exceptions. If you reside in any European Economic Area (EEA) country, which encompasses the EU member states, Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway, you’re in luck. You will receive a free license to stream these games on any cloud gaming service of your choice.

For gamers outside the EEA, the ball is in Ubisoft’s court when it comes to cloud streaming rights for Activision Blizzard games. This includes the possibility of licensing these games back to Microsoft for inclusion in Xbox Cloud Gaming. While it’s legally feasible for Ubisoft to offer exclusivity to specific cloud providers, this is highly unlikely. Public knowledge of Ubisoft’s control over these rights and the potential backlash make such a scenario improbable. However, Microsoft will need to pay a wholesale arrangement fee to license Activision Blizzard games for its cloud services.

So, why Ubisoft? Several companies vied for cloud gaming rights for Activision Blizzard games and had to pitch their proposals to the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority. Ultimately, Microsoft had the final say in choosing its partner for this endeavor, and Ubisoft’s extensive experience in the streaming space set it apart.

Chris Early, Ubisoft’s SVP of strategic partnerships and business development, explained: “We’ve been active in the streaming space for a long time, and that’s one of the reasons Microsoft came to us; we were the first studio that Google worked with for Stadia; the first company that Amazon worked with for Luna; and we’ve been partners with NVIDIA GeForce Now for years. To Microsoft, it made sense that if somebody was going to be familiar with the space and know what the value would be for streaming, it would be us. And we saw the value as well.“

This deal also means that Activision Blizzard games will become available on Ubisoft Plus, Ubisoft’s game subscription service. While the deal spans 15 years, the licenses are perpetual, allowing Ubisoft to continue providing these games to players and companies globally, excluding the EEA, even after the 15-year period expires.

“Our expectation is that they will be on Ubisoft Plus, and then we have the rights to be able to license them individually to companies as well,” says Early. “Perhaps there’s a company somewhere in the world that wants to license those rights and add to the streaming service they have or start up a new streaming service, and I think that’s going to be part of the fun of the next 15 years or more of how streaming evolves.“

In addition to Ubisoft’s involvement, Microsoft has secured agreements with various cloud gaming services to appease EU regulators. These deals include partnerships with NVIDIA (10-year deal), operator of the GeForce Now cloud gaming service; Boosteroid, the largest independent cloud gaming provider in Ukraine; Nware, a Spain-based cloud gaming provider; Ubitus, a Taiwan-based cloud gaming provider; and EE, a British mobile network provider. Microsoft has also inked deals with Nintendo (10-year deal) and Sony for Call of Duty and has pledged to keep Call of Duty available on its Steam store in partnership with Valve.