The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the Federal Trade Commission’s recent request to stop Microsoft’s takeover of Activision Blizzard, paving the way for what’s likely the biggest-ever merger in the gaming space after more than a year of regulatory saga.
FTC had asked to suspend the purchase in the future Term until July 18 when the Northern Territory of California is appealing a decision with Microsoft on the side. This was the antitrust agency’s last chance to stop the historic $69 billion merger that would see major gaming franchises like the one below. Call of Duty, World of WarcraftAnd sugar paste they all become an extension of the Xbox.
The regulators argued that the federal court ignored evidence that Microsoft may have the potential to make these franchises exclusive to its console and cloud gaming platforms to corner the market. in order Microsoft accused the FTC of using delaying tactics and underscoring the massive $3 billion exit fee Microsoft would have to pay to Activision if the deal didn’t materialize for any reason.
The Ninth Circuit will still consider this objection, but He rejected the FTC’s motion. Blocking the merger until this decision is taken and giving Microsoft the green light to close its deal on July 17.
It’s been a long journey up to this point, fraught with bends, including overseas in the UK, the only country to block the deal so far. That country’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) had refused to merge on the grounds that it would give Microsoft too many advantages in the emerging cloud gaming market.
Following the FTC’s first court defeat earlier this week, however, the CMA announced that it had happened. Renegotiation with Microsoft on new ways to resolve antitrust conflicts. It has now extended the deadline for approval of the deal to August, which shows that the tech giant is ready to accept its latest concessions.
While nothing is certain until it’s final, Microsoft’s shocking acquisition of one of the world’s biggest game publishers now looks set to come true and soon has the potential to completely reshape the video game landscape in the process. Or maybe Xbox owners will get a bunch of more free games on Game Pass. Time will show us.
