The purchase of ActivisionBlizzard by microsoft awaits regulatory approval in key markets such as the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union. Those from Redmond know that a misstep in one of those territories can put back their aspirations to get their hands on Call of Duty and other franchises of the renowned studio. And while the company hopes to close the deal favorably in fiscal 2023, it already knows when it will have to pass one of the litmus tests.
is that the European Commission set the provisional deadline to make known whether or not to approve the acquisition for 68,700 million dollars. will be the tuesday november 8according to a document posted on its website.
The information available is not very extensive, but the date in question could deliver two outcomes. The first, that the purchase of Activision Blizzard be given the go-ahead; the second, that the authorities choose to enter a second phase of investigation, much deeper than the one that is already underway. If the latter occurs, it is likely that the definition of European regulators will not be known until next year.
In any case, no one should be too surprised if on November 8 the European Commission decides to continue analyzing the purchase of Activision Blizzard. In recent weeks, a report from the Financial Times indicated that both the EU regulator and the UK Competition and Markets Authority intend to further investigate the agreement between the parties.
The main concern revolves around potential anti-competitive effects that the Microsoft-driven acquisition could entail. Especially how it could affect rival platforms’ access to your intellectual property. Something that has been mostly represented by discussions about the possible future of Call of Duty.
Microsoft confident in the approval of the purchase of Activision Blizzard
While waiting for a definition by the regulators in the crucial markets, Microsoft has been confident of obtaining a favorable resolution. A few days ago, Satya Nadella, CEO of the Redmond firm, said he was “very, very sure” that the purchase of Activision Blizzard would go through.
The executive insisted that his company will continue to be far from being the one with the highest turnover in the video game industry. Likewise, asserted that the fragmentation of the market is too great to speak of competition problems. “If this is for competition, let us compete,” she said.
Regardless of what happens in Europe, both in the EU and in the UK, Microsoft will face strong domestic regulatory scrutiny. The agreement is under review by the FTC, whose president, Lina Khan, is known for its strong stance against large corporations. Something that has earned him the enmity of companies like Amazon, Meta and NVIDIA.
In addition, several senators have called for the purchase to be blocked to prevent Bobby Kotick, the current CEO of Activision Blizzard, from leaving the company without being held accountable for multiple allegations of sexual harassment and toxic work culture involving him.