Sony's Confidential Document Accidentally Reveals Massive Call of Duty Earnings On PlayStation

A leaked document accidentally revealed the revenue generated by the Call of Duty franchise on Sony Group Corp.'s SONY PlayStation platforms.

The document was initially submitted as evidence in the ongoing legal proceedings between the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Microsoft Corp. MSFT regarding its proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard Inc. ATVI

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According to IGN, this document focused on a letter sent by Jim Ryan, CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment. Due to inadequate redaction, portions of the letter involuntarily exposed the financial value attributed to Call of Duty on PlayStation alone.

The letter disclosed the first-person shooter franchise generated a substantial sum of "over $800 million" within the U.S. in 2021.

In addition to the Call of Duty revelations, the internal document also sheds light on the budgets allocated to two of PlayStation's first-party titles. It showed Horizon Forbidden West had a production cost of $212 million, while The Last of Us Part II had a budget of $220 million.

The document further referenced internal surveys conducted by Sony Interactive Entertainment, indicating that nearly half of PS5 users in the U.S. also own a Nintendo Switch, whereas less than 20 percent of PS5 owners in the same country possess an Xbox Series X or Series S console.

The document was withdrawn after the leaked numbers were noticed by the public.

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