Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard deal in the United States by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) antitrust lawsuit, but after five days of intense trial, California Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley (Jacqueline Scott Corley) rejected the FTC’s request for a preliminary injunction to allow Microsoft to complete the deal.
Activision Blizzard owns World of Warcraft, Call of Duty, Candy Crush Saga and other well-known game brands, Microsoft announced in January last year that it would acquire Activision Blizzard for $69 billion (Currently about RMB 498.87 billion), which is the largest merger and acquisition deal ever in the gaming industry.
Arguing that the deal would harm competition in the gaming market and undermine innovation and consumer choice, the FTC filed a request for a preliminary injunction with the court in March in an attempt to prevent Microsoft from completing the deal by the July 18 deadline. However, after hearing testimony and arguments from both sides, Judge Coley denied the FTC’s request after finding that the FTC had not provided sufficient evidence that the deal would substantially lessen competition, and that, instead, the record evidence showed that more consumers would be able to access Call of Duty and other Activision content as a result.
Following Judge Coley’s decision, Microsoft President Brad Smith issued a statement saying he appreciated “the San Francisco court’s quick and thorough decision” and hoped that others would take action to address the issues Microsoft faced in its acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
Activision Blizzard also reacted to the decision. “Our merger will benefit consumers and workers,” Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick said in a statement, “and it will promote competition rather than allowing entrenched market leaders to continue to dominate our fast-growing industry. “
Although Microsoft won the case in the U.S., the company still faces opposition from the U.K. Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The U.K. regulator moved to block Microsoft from completing the acquisition in April, and Microsoft is now appealing the decision, with an appeal hearing set to begin on July 28th. EU regulators approved the deal in May.
The FTC now has the opportunity to appeal the court’s ruling, but the agency had not previously appealed the court’s decision to allow Meta to acquire Within, so it may also drop its lawsuit against Microsoft and Activision Blizzard. If the court order stands, it would be the second major loss for FTC Chairwoman Lina Khan since she was confirmed as head of the agency in 2021.
