Microsoft’s quest to acquire Activision Blizzard appears to be making some headway as the EU is reportedly likely to approve the monumental $68.7 billion purchase. The European Commission will make its decision regardingMicrosoft’s acquisition later this year. Meanwhile, there are still a few major hurdles before the biggest merger in gaming history can take place.
Just over a year ago,Microsoft announced its plan to purchase Activision Blizzardin a move that could have a profound impact on the gaming industry. This acquisition would see Microsoft in control ofCall of Duty, a juggernaut franchise that is consistently one of the top-selling games each year. It would also place the massiveWarcraft,StarCraft,Diablo, andOverwatchfranchises in Microsoft’s hands, along with other major names likeSpyro,Crash Bandicoot, andCandy Crush. Regulators have been understandably concerned about this purchase, as it could be seen as monopolistic. One of the main worries of the US Federal Trade Commission and European Commission is that this move could effectively sabotage competitors of Microsoft’s Xbox console by making these games exclusive.
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According to multiple sources familiar with the matter,Microsoft’s deals with Nintendo and Nvidiahave been convincing enough and are likely to address EU antitrust concerns. Microsoft recently made 10-year agreements with Nintendo and Nvidia ensuring thatCall of Dutywould be available on Nintendo consoles and thatCall of Dutyand Xbox PC games would be brought to the Nvidia GeForce Now cloud gaming platform. This move directly addresses the antitrust concerns of regulators and appears to have gone a long way toward securing the deal.
The same 10-yearCall of Dutydeal was offered to Sony, although Sony declined the offer. This appears to have been a calculated move on Sony’s part, as accepting the deal would very likely help Microsoft’s case with regulators. Sony is in a tough spot when it comes toCall of Duty, however, as PlayStation’sCall of Dutydeal with Activision is set to expire in 2024. If Microsoft securesCall of Dutywithout Sony’s cooperation, it’s uncertain if Microsoft will decide to give PlayStation access to the series.
It was also reported recently thatChina is set to approve Microsoft’s acquisition, which was a major piece of the puzzle. Regardless, Microsoft isn’t out of the woods yet, as the US Federal Trade Commission and the UK Competition and Markets Authority still need to be won over. These regulators have been particularly wary of the deal, and it’s still up in the air whether or not Microsoft’s recent maneuvers will be enough to sway them.
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