Microsoft’s proposal to acquire Activision Blizzard has been unconditionally approved in Serbia. As reported by Reuters, the deal was authorized in Serbiawhich joins Saudi Arabia and Brazil in being the first to approve this purchase.
And it is that, to approve the agreement, 69 billion eurosapproval is required from all antitrust regulators around the world. Not so given that last week it was reported that Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard could be obstructed by American organizations.
To move forward with the purchase, it seems likely that Microsoft will make concessions to regulatory bodies in Europe and the US so that the deal is unlocked. Among these improvements there would be some agreements with Sony, such as the ten-year license for Call of Duty. This, according to some legal sources, would be done first by the European Commission, and then by other agencies, unlock the purchase
The investigation into the Activision Blizzard purchase is still ongoing
It should be remembered that there are several organizations currently investigating Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard. These include the European Commission, the CMA (UK) and the FTC (US). They are the three organizations that must give the go-ahead for the purchase and for this they continue to investigate.
On the other hand, faced with the possibility of US regulators suing for monopoly, Activision Blizzard has already said it will fight to defend its purchase by Microsoft. At the time, an Activision Blizzard executive, Lulu Cheng, commented that the idea that the Microsoft purchase was anti-competitive was preposterous. Cheng added that the company will fight for the deal permanently closed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6O41eTaVpQ
That being the case, there are still a few months left before the agreement can be confirmed or cancelled. The European Commission has set a date for its decision: next March 1st. However, the remaining agencies are still investigating thoroughly. In this context, it should be remembered that, if Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard is not definitively completed, the latter must make up for the first time.
