In the US, the court did not block the merger of Microsoft and Activision Blizzard
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On July 11, the court rejected the request of the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which demanded a temporary ban on the completion of the transaction, the value of which is $69 billion. The FCS has the opportunity to appeal the court’s decision until July 14.
A spokesman for the commission said the FCS was disappointed by the court’s decision, “given the clear threat this merger poses to open competition in cloud gaming, subscription services and consoles.” At the same time, Microsoft President Brad Smith on Twitter thanked the court “for a quick and thorough decision,” and Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick said that the merger will benefit consumers.
It is noted that after the court decision, the British Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it was ready to consider Microsoft’s proposals to resolve antitrust problems in the UK.
The deal became public in January last year. Microsoft announced its agreement, calling it the largest in the history of gaming (and its own). The value of the deal with Activision Blizzard is $68.7 billion ($95 per share). The Financial Times estimates that if the deal goes through, Microsoft will become the third largest gaming company by revenue after China’s Tencent and Japan’s Sony.
In April, the CMA blocked a merger between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard, fearing the tech giant would make games from one of the biggest game developers and publishers exclusive to its own cloud gaming service. In May, the European Commission approved the merger between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard, on the condition that Microsoft adhere to several conditions.
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