- Microsoft’s updated purchase bid for Activision Blizzard “opens the door” to the transaction being approved.
- UK regulators earlier this year vetoed the original $69 billion (£59 billion) agreement.
- Microsoft continues to believe that the combination will increase interest in its Xbox gaming system.
According to the UK’s Competition Markets Authority (CMA), Microsoft’s updated purchase bid for Activision Blizzard “opens the door” to the transaction being approved.
The revised agreement does not include Microsoft purchasing Activision Blizzard’s cloud gaming rights, which appears to allay CMA concerns. UK regulators earlier this year vetoed the original $69 billion (£59 billion) agreement.
Microsoft’s Call of Duty pact
The CMA was then given a modified agreement by Microsoft last month. By the new proposal, Microsoft consented to give French video game maker Ubisoft a 15-year license to stream Activision titles from the cloud. The cloud streaming of titles like Call of Duty, Overwatch, and World of Warcraft will no longer be under Microsoft’s control thanks to this sale to Ubisoft.
The merger, according to Sarah Cardell, chief executive of the CMA, could only proceed if the industry’s competitiveness, innovation, and variety were maintained. Before deciding on the deal, a consultation will be started.
The deal closes the first “test case” for the CMA and provides insight into how competition laws may be used in the UK now that the CMA has more authority as a result of Brexit. Microsoft continues to believe that the combination will increase interest in its Xbox gaming system and its gaming subscription service.
After the consultation period ends on October 6th, Microsoft anticipates the CMA will make a final decision on the amended bid the following month. The agreement cannot be implemented internationally without its consent.
Activision called the preliminary approval “great news” for its relationship with Microsoft going ahead and expressed a desire to collaborate with Microsoft to see the regulatory review process through.
Business strategists and game developers at Microsoft are considering what they can do with access to some of the largest franchises in gaming now that they are in control of such a sizable portion of the gaming market.
