Microsoft’s $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard has been unconditionally approved in Serbia after the deal was approved in Saudi Arabia and Brazil.
According to Reuters, Serbia has joined Saudi Arabia and Brazil in approving the $68.7 billion deal, which is currently under review by global antitrust regulators. Reuters also claims that Microsoft may soon make concessions to EU regulators to help push the deal through.
The resistance to Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard is currently dominated by competition issues in the Call of Duty franchise, with Sony voicing opposition to the deal. If the review passes, the all-cash acquisition will be the largest in the history of the technology industry, involving the highest amount of transactions.
The European Commission previously said: “It is crucial to ensure that the gaming ecosystem remains vibrant for the benefit of users in an industry that is growing rapidly. We must ensure that there are still opportunities for future and existing distributors of PC and console video games, as well as for competitors of PC operating systems.” The agency has until March 23, 2023, to decide whether to approve the deal.
