Why the FTC Objected to Xbox Game Pass’s 2024 Price Increase

The FTC did not ban Microsoft’s 2024 Game Pass price increase or declare it illegal. Instead, in a July 18, 2024 filing to the Ninth Circuit, the agency cited the changes as evidence supporting its broader challenge to Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard.

The FTC’s argument was that Microsoft had combined higher prices with a less valuable lower-priced tier—just as Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 was approaching release. That was an antitrust argument about possible post-merger consumer harm, not a separate enforcement ruling against Game Pass subscribers.

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The short version

• In the United States, Game Pass Ultimate rose from $16.99 to $19.99 per month in 2024.
• Console Game Pass, which cost $10.99 per month, was discontinued for new subscribers.
• Game Pass Standard replaced it at $14.99 per month but excluded day-one releases.
• The FTC said this combination of higher prices and reduced benefits illustrated the consumer harm it had warned about in its Activision Blizzard merger case.

These were 2024 U.S. prices, not necessarily the prices or plan names available today.

What the FTC actually filed

On July 18, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission sent a letter to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in FTC v. Microsoft Corp., case no. 23-15992. The filing brought the court’s attention to Microsoft’s Game Pass restructuring and price increases in markets relevant to the agency’s merger analysis.

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The FTC described the new Standard offering as a “degraded product” because it cost more than the outgoing Console tier while omitting day-one access to new releases. The agency argued that the changes showed Microsoft exercising market power after acquiring Activision Blizzard.

The key point was not simply that a subscription became more expensive. The FTC’s theory was:

Higher price + removal of day-one access from the lower tier + control of a major new release = potential post-merger consumer harm.

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Read the FTC’s July 18, 2024 filing for the agency’s precise claims and figures.

What changed in Game Pass in July 2024?

Microsoft announced the changes on July 9, 2024. New-subscriber pricing in the United States began rolling out on July 10, while existing subscribers were scheduled to receive the higher prices later, beginning September 12.

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The FTC’s filing characterized the move from Console to Ultimate as an 81% increase and the move from Console to Standard as a 36% increase. Those comparisons describe the 2024 plan changes; they should not be read as current Game Pass prices.

There were also practical differences between new and existing customers. A person who already had Console Game Pass and kept recurring billing was not necessarily affected in the same way as someone who canceled and later tried to subscribe. Benefits and pricing also differed between console and PC plans, and Microsoft announced regional changes separately.

Why Call of Duty made the change significant

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 was scheduled for release on October 25, 2024. During the merger litigation, Microsoft had represented that the game would come to Game Pass on the day of its console release without an acquisition-related price increase.

The FTC did not treat that representation as a promise that Game Pass prices could never rise. Rather, it argued that Microsoft’s later restructuring weakened the practical value of the representation. The lower-priced Console plan was being withdrawn for new subscribers, while day-one access was reserved for the more expensive Ultimate tier.

Under the 2024 structure, someone seeking day-one access to Black Ops 6 through Game Pass would therefore need the higher-priced plan. Standard still offered access to Game Pass games and included console multiplayer, but it did not provide the same release-day benefit.

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That distinction mattered to the FTC because Microsoft controlled both the subscription service and a major new release from the company it had acquired. The agency used the timing and structure of the changes to support its broader theory of post-merger harm.

How this connected to the Activision Blizzard merger

The FTC had sought to stop Microsoft from acquiring Activision Blizzard, arguing that the transaction could harm competition in gaming. On July 11, 2023, Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley denied the FTC’s request for a preliminary injunction. The court concluded that the FTC had not shown a likelihood of prevailing on its specific claim that the merger would substantially lessen competition.

Microsoft completed the acquisition on October 13, 2023, in a transaction valued at approximately $68.7 billion. The FTC continued challenging the deal through subsequent proceedings and appeals, which is why its 2024 Game Pass filing still had a legal audience even after the acquisition had closed.

The regulatory picture was not identical everywhere. The U.K. Competition and Markets Authority initially objected, particularly over cloud gaming, before accepting concessions involving cloud-streaming rights. The European Union and U.K. ultimately allowed the transaction to proceed after those changes. Those outcomes did not prevent the FTC from continuing its U.S. challenge.

The Game Pass changes were therefore presented as later evidence in an ongoing merger dispute—not as a new, standalone case created solely by a subscription price change.

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Was the price increase illegal?

No—not based on the FTC letter.

The filing contained the FTC’s argument and allegations. It did not establish that Microsoft had violated antitrust law, order Microsoft to reverse the prices, or create an automatic right to refunds.

It is useful to separate the three legal positions:

• FTC allegation: The price and tier changes were consistent with the consumer harm the agency had predicted could follow the merger.
• Microsoft business decision: Microsoft changed its prices, plan lineup, and benefits.
• Judicial ruling: The district court denied the FTC’s preliminary-injunction request in 2023. That ruling addressed whether the deal should be stopped at that stage; it was not a declaration that every future Microsoft pricing decision was lawful.

In other words, the FTC was asking the appeals court to consider what the Game Pass changes suggested about its merger theory. It was not acting as a consumer-refund tribunal.

What the changes meant for subscribers

New-release players

Players who wanted major first-party releases on day one were pushed toward Ultimate under the 2024 structure. The headline Ultimate increase was $3 per month, but the larger issue for some console users was losing the ability to obtain day-one access through the cheaper Console tier.

Occasional players

Someone who plays only one or two games a year may not receive enough value from a recurring subscription, particularly if those games are likely to be purchased individually and played for a long time. A subscription becomes easier to justify when it replaces several full-price purchases or when the player regularly tries games from the catalog.

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Existing Console subscribers

Existing subscribers could retain the Console plan under the reported 2024 rules if they maintained recurring billing. Canceling and later returning could produce a different result, because the plan was no longer available to new subscribers.

PC and cloud users

PC Game Pass was not identical to Console Game Pass or Ultimate. Cloud gaming, multiplayer, catalogs, and day-one access depended on the plan, platform, region, and game. Those differences made a simple “cheapest versus most expensive” comparison incomplete.

Is the FTC’s criticism still relevant?

It remains relevant as a historical explanation of the 2024 merger dispute, but the 2024 lineup should not be presented as current. As of August 18, 2026, Microsoft’s public Game Pass page describes a different structure that includes Essential, Premium, Ultimate, and PC-only Game Pass plans.

Microsoft’s current page describes varying catalogs, day-one access, cloud-gaming benefits, and multiplayer features, while also warning that availability and features can change by region, platform, plan, and time. The page capture did not display populated price fields, so the 2024 figures above should not be used as current prices.

For a present-day buying decision, check the official Xbox Game Pass page for the plan available in your region. Compare the benefits you actually need:

• Day-one access to new releases
• Console or PC access
• Online multiplayer
• Cloud gaming
• Catalog turnover and game availability
• Monthly flexibility versus a longer commitment

PC players who do not need console access may prefer the PC-only offering. Cloud gaming can be useful without a console upgrade, but it is a poor fit for unreliable broadband, strict data caps, or high latency. Players focused mainly on one publisher may also find a narrower service such as EA Play or Ubisoft+ more relevant, though neither is a general substitute for Game Pass.

The bottom line on the FTC’s “anger”

The FTC’s complaint was more specific than “Microsoft raised the price.” It argued that Microsoft raised the price of Ultimate, removed Console Game Pass for new subscribers, and placed day-one access to an important Activision release behind the most expensive tier. The agency said that pattern supported its existing claim that the merger could enable consumer harm.

But the filing was evidence and argument in a continuing legal challenge. It was not a ruling that the Game Pass increase was illegal, not an order to undo the change, and not proof that the FTC had won its merger case.

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