- Microsoft’s revised $69 billion acquisition of video game developer Activision Blizzard received preliminary permission from British competition regulators on Friday, clearing the last remaining international barrier to the completion of one of the biggest tech transactions in history.
- The modified proposal “substantially addresses previous concerns,” according to the Competition and Markets Authority, about stifling competition in the quickly expanding cloud gaming market, which frees players from purchasing pricey consoles and gaming computers by streaming to tablets, phones, and other devices.
- The watchdog stated that the revised offer “opens the way to the deal being cleared,” although there are still some unanswered questions. Regulators are currently gathering input from “interested parties” before making a final determination. Microsoft has provided remedies that the watchdog has provisionally determined will address those issues.
- The announcement demonstrates that the U.K. watchdog is almost certainly going to change its mind about preventing Microsoft from acquiring the company behind popular video game titles like Call of Duty and World of Warcraft.
- We are “encouraged by this positive development,” according to Microsoft President Brad Smith, in the U.K. watchdog’s review procedure.
- Activision CEO Bobby Kotick said in a message to employees posted online that the preliminary approval was a “a significant milestone for the merger and a testament to our solutions-oriented work with regulators.”
- For all current and future Activision games released for the next 15 years, Microsoft will sell Ubisoft Entertainment in France the cloud streaming rights outside of the EU and three additional European nations.
