Microsoft wins FTC appeal regarding acquisition of Activision Blizzard
Microsoft has now won its court battle against the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), officially receiving their permission to proceed with their planned acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
As reported by The Verge, judge Jacqueline Scott Corley decided not to grant the FTC’s preliminary injunction request against Microsoft’s transaction before 18 July’s deadline; although things still might go south.
Back in April, it was confirmed that the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) in the UK had decided against Microsoft’s planned acquisition of Activision due to “concerns that this deal may alter future innovation in cloud gaming markets and reduce choice for UK gamers in future”. Furthermore, according to regulator claims that Microsoft’s proposal had several flaws.
At the time of CMA’s ruling, Microsoft President Brad Smith issued the following statement. Microsoft remains fully committed to this acquisition and intends to appeal the CMA decision, which disfavoured an approach designed to address competition concerns while discouraging technological innovation and investment within Britain.
Now, as The Verge notes, for this deal to go forward fully, either CMA must agree to negotiate or Microsoft must close around UK jurisdiction. Following FTC court ruling and statement from Smith: “Now that this dispute between Microsoft and FTC has been settled through court proceeding in America, our focus returns back onto UK transactions; although ultimately disagreeing with CMA concerns we are considering how best we may modify transaction in order to address them in ways acceptable by them”.
Microsoft and Activision have reached an agreement with the CMA that a stay of litigation in the UK would serve the public interest, and submitted an actionable submission before the Competition Appeal Tribunal as proof thereof.
Judge Corley awarded Microsoft an immense victory when ruling: “Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision is widely seen as one of the largest transactions ever in tech history, warranting close examination by regulators and public scrutiny. That scrutiny has paid dividends: Microsoft made written commitments committing it to keeping Call of Duty available across PlayStation for 10 years on parity with Xbox; reached an agreement with Nintendo to bring Call of Duty onto Switch; and entered several agreements that for the first time brought Activision content into multiple cloud gaming services for full consideration by regulators.”
She continued: “The court finds the FTC has failed to demonstrate it is likely it will succeed in its argument that this particular vertical merger may substantially decrease competition in this particular industry, contrary to evidence showing increased consumer access to Call of Duty and other Activision content.”
Smith issued an official statement thanking San Francisco Court for its prompt and comprehensive decision, hoping other jurisdictions continue to work toward finding timely resolution. As we’ve demonstrated throughout this process, Smith remains dedicated to working creatively and collaboratively towards solving regulatory concerns.
