Report: Microsoft will obtain EU approval to acquire Activision

Mones Hawass Books

Friday, 03 March 2023 10:00 PM

Microsoft announced Activision’s bid in January last year, its largest ever, to take on rivals Tencent and Sony, in the burgeoning video game market and venture into the metaverse, online virtual worlds where people can work, play and socialize.

The people said the European Commission, which is due to decide on the deal by April 25, is not expected to require Microsoft to sell the assets to win its approval. Parties other than Sony. These solutions usually indicate the future behavior of the merging company.

Shares of Activision, which jumped 1.8% in pre-market trading after the Reuters story was published, were up 2.6% in late trade. Microsoft chief Brad Smith said last month that the US software group was willing to offer competing licensing deals to address antitrust concerns, but it would not sell a franchise. Activision’s profitable “Call of Duty.”

Smith said it wasn’t possible or realistic to consider cutting one game or one segment out of Activision and separating it from the rest.

Microsoft said it was “committed to providing effective, easy-to-implement solutions that address the concerns of the European Commission.” A Microsoft spokesperson said: “Our commitment to granting 100% equal access to Call of Duty to Sony, Steam, NVIDIA and others preserves the benefits of the deal for gamers and developers and increases competition in market”.

And last month, Microsoft said it had signed 10-year licensing agreements with Nintendo and Nvidia that will bring Call of Duty to their gaming platforms, with agreements conditional on the Activision deal greenlighting.

The deal faces regulatory headwinds in Britain, with Britain’s competition agency suggesting that Microsoft liquidate Call of Duty to address its concerns while the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) asked a judge to block the deal.