Microsoft has taken a big step closer to taking over video game giant Activision Blizzard. British competition watchdogs have apparently dispelled their concerns – but residual doubts remain.
After around a year and a half, Microsoft has probably overcome the last major hurdle on the way to the largest takeover in the video game industry. The British antitrust watchdog signaled today that it would withdraw its original veto against the $69 billion purchase of Activision Blizzard with games like “Call of Duty” and “World of Warcraft.” The additional offer of cloud gaming activities to Activision rival Ubisoft “largely eliminates previous concerns,” said the CMA.
So far no legal means for selling cloud rights to Ubisoft
However, there are still some “remaining concerns” because the authority has not yet had any legal means to enforce the sale to the games company Ubisoft, the supervisors said. However, Microsoft has offered remedial measures that will be examined before a final decision is made. Among other things, the tech giant had proposed ceding cloud gaming rights to Ubisoft for 15 years.
The blockade by the competition regulator CMA is the final hurdle to completing the deal. The UK is the last major country that must approve the takeover of Activision Blizzard, based in Santa Monica, California. The antitrust watchdogs primarily feared that the purchase would restrict competition in cloud gaming and that Microsoft would then only be able to offer the games on its Xbox console and its own cloud service.
The games run on servers on the Internet and are only transferred to the users’ devices. Microsoft, which already has a strong presence in the business, had also signed long-term licensing agreements with Activision rivals such as Sony and Nintendo for the classic game “Call of Duty” in order to allay competition concerns.
Approval should come by October 18th
The CMA now wants to consult before making a final decision. Microsoft and Activision Blizzard had extended their deadline for completing the acquisition to October 18th. Microsoft manager Brad Smith emphasized today that they will work towards obtaining approval by then.
In recent weeks, the British authorities have come under increasing pressure to revise their original decision. The European Union (EU) had already agreed to the handover in May, subject to conditions. In July, the US antitrust authority FTC also failed in its attempt to stop the merger in court.
Microsoft and Activision Blizzard announced the deal, which was worth around $69 billion, at the beginning of 2022. By purchasing Activision Blizzard, the company wants to secure popular video games such as “Call of Duty”, “Overwatch” and “Candy Crush”.