'COD' will 'never charge for multiplayer'

Activision has no plans to start a subscription model for Call of Duty, according to the company publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg.

In an interview with IndustryGamers, Hirshberg categorically stated that multiplayer will always remain free with the game.

“The experience you have out of the box, connecting with the online community to play Call of Duty, is absolutely integral to the experience and we'll never charge for that. It's not going to be something we'll attempt to monetize - it's part of the package,” he said.

Responding to analyst Michael Pachter’s prediction of an optional monthly subscription, Hirshberg added: “He's probably looking at meta-trends in the world and in culture about online services and new ways things should be monetized from Netflix to cloud-based computing... But at the end of the day, all I'm trying to get across is I can unequivocally say we will never, ever charge for the multiplayer.”

CEO Bobby Kotick has previously expressed a desire to introduce an online subscription service.