In what should be the final story of the Microsoft and Activision-Blizzard saga, the CMA has approved Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision-Blizzard, meaning Xbox is on the verge of owning one of Gaming’s largest publishers.
We’ve cleared the new deal for Microsoft to buy Activision without cloud gaming rights.
In August, Microsoft made a concession that would see Ubisoft, instead of Microsoft, buy Activision’s cloud gaming rights.
Read more: https://t.co/Z4scLEJFy0
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— Competition & Markets Authority (@CMAgovUK) October 13, 2023
We’re grateful for the CMA’s thorough review and decision today. We have now crossed the final regulatory hurdle to close this acquisition, which we believe will benefit players and the gaming industry worldwide.
— Brad Smith (@BradSmi) October 13, 2023
https://twitter.com/lulumeservey/status/1712712710935261356?t=ZTMYZoTjbuZGqIZDi5mclw&s=19
Microsoft initially announced their intent to acquire ABK for $68.7 Billion Dollars on January 18th, 2022. Microsoft expected the deal to close by July 18th, 2023, but fierce opposition by Sony, as well as from multiple regulatory bodies including the FTC and CMA, stood as road blocks to completion by that time frame.
We now wait for official word from Xbox on the deals closing which we expect to happen imminently.
