Microsoft Suggests PlayStation 6 and Next Xbox Could Launch in 2028 During FTC Hearing

The FTC’s ongoing investigation into Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard for $69 billion has uncovered several significant details that would have remained unknown without the agency’s participation in the antitrust lawsuit.

One such document, which is being held as evidence, reveals that Microsoft expects the next-generation PlayStation console — likely to be called the PlayStation 6, with the next mainline Xbox coming in 2028 — in about five years, as reported by IGN. .

It’s likely that Microsoft is already working on the next-gen console, which is why they may discuss it in a document presented to the FTC. If history is any indication, Microsoft and Sony have released their home game consoles in the same window.

The PlayStation 5 was released on November 12, 2020 – two days after the Xbox Series X/S. The PlayStation 4 was released on November 15, 2013, followed by the Xbox One on November 22, 2013. As you can see, both companies tend to release their consoles during the holiday season, close to each other. Therefore, if Xbox plans to release the next-gen Xbox Series console in 2028, it’s possible that Sony will follow suit.

At the FTC hearing, Xbox chief Phil Spencer claimed that Xbox is the third largest game console market – behind Sony’s PlayStation and Nintendo. He also claimed that Sony is aggressively trying to put Xbox out of business, as reported by The Verge.

It was also claimed that Xbox acquired Bethesda – the publisher of Starfield – after Sony tried to get an exclusivity deal for the game on PlayStation 5.

In related news, an alleged internal Microsoft email in evidence in the US 9th Circuit Court in a separate lawsuit suggests that one of Microsoft’s intentions in buying Activision-Blizzard is to “put its main competitor, Sony PlayStation, out of business.”