Since Microsoft owns Activision will I be able to play Cold War on pc if I bought it on Xbox?

Microsoft doesn't own Activision yet. If the sale goes through, it'll be another year or so before they do. So there's no way to know right now if that's something they're planning on doing.

Unfortunately it is not that easy. Microsoft weren't the ones that released the patch for cold war. That was activision. If Microsoft owned the game it would more than likely be an Xbox exclusive like Forza or MSFS.

Unfortunately Call of Duty Cold War is not an Xbox Play Anywhere title and is not sold for PC on the Windows store either.

If you want to play on PC, you'll need to purchase it from the Activision/Blizzard Battle.net store. Warzone is free to download and play though.

Hey Martin

Thank you for taking the time to post this on the Xbox Forums. We understand that you are inquiring about backwards compatibility for a new title.

Yes, you will be able to play that game on the Xbox Series S.

I would like to refer you to
Activision's FAQ as there are some important details as to how the developer is handeling the new generation.

I hope this helps.

Cold War is actually not a Play Anywhere title as it's not available for purchase through the Microsoft Store on PC.