It was touch and go for a while there but it looks like Microsoft is finally making moves to finalize its acquisition of Activision Blizzard despite the Federal Trade Commission opting to block the deal.
The New York Times reports that Microsoft may have secured major support from anti-trust regulators in the UK and EU who have been leaning towards approving the merger in recent weeks. The organizations began to view the acquisition more favorably after Microsoft assured them that it would share the Call of Duty franchise with Sony and Nintendo.
The UK Competitions and Market Authority are set to make a decision later this week and Microsoft is reportedly confident that it will also receive support from the European Commission which will make a final decision later this month. If Microsoft receives such significant levels of support it would be able to challenge the decision made by the FTC which blocked the deal after filing a complaint with FTC administrative judge.
UK CMA support is likely to be Microsoft’s ace in the hole for ensuring that the acquisition goes through. The company has steadily been working to gain the organization’s approval over recent weeks and has committed to sharing Call of Duty with cloud-based gaming companies like Ubitus and Boosteroid for ten years.
A major concern for Sony since the announcement of Microsoft’s acquisition is that Call of Duty would be exclusive to Xbox and Game Pass which has led to unprecedented vitriol and hostility between the two gaming giants. Legal experts believe that the FTC will struggle to uphold their complaint as Microsoft has no stake in mobile gaming and describes itself as only “the third largest console maker”
Are you hoping to see this saga come to an end?
For more Insider Gaming, check out our report on Call of Duty DMZ going pay to win.
