Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard, despite taking its first step early last year, has been the talk for months, and it seems that it will continue to be so. International regulators are still debating the consequences of this titanic purchase, but Redmond’s have made a new enemy: United Kingdomwho has said “no” to the purchase.
One more day, Microsoft is back in the headlines and we would like it to be the protagonist of good news, but nothing is further from reality. After many comings and goings, the Markets and Competition Authority (CMA) of Great Britain has blocked the purchase of the Activision Blizzard business conglomerate by Microsoft.
A new enemy, and a very powerful one along with the United States, which already in 2022 launched a lawsuit to prevent the purchase. Now, those of Redmond open a new front of disputes with a CMA seeing the proposed acquisition as a merger that would “alter the future of the fast-growing cloud gaming market.”
The United Kingdom supports its refusal with the idea that the innovation will be reduced if an entity, in this case Microsoft, brings together the Activision Blizzard licenses under its umbrella. “Microsoft has a strong position in cloud gaming services and the data has shown the CMA that it would be commercially beneficial for Microsoft to make Activision games exclusive to its own cloud gaming service,” Video says. Games Chronicle.
However, perhaps the most important extract from this refusal is the following, and that is that the non-merger of both business conglomerates would lead Activision to offer its games and licenses in other cloud services for the coming years. “The agreement would strengthen Microsoft’s advantage in the market by giving you control over major game content like Call of Duty, Overwatch and World of Warcraft.”
Faced with a very important “no” like this, Microsoft has not let a minute go by and has confirmed that it is disappointed before the decision of the CMA. “We remain fully committed to this acquisition and we will appeal. The CMA’s decision rejects a pragmatic path to address competition concerns and discourages technological innovation and investment in the UK.”
Although there are many countries that have accepted Microsoft’s purchase agreements for the entire Activision Blizzard gaming ecosystem, everything seems to indicate that UK decision is final. The British conclude that this decision came immediately after Microsoft failed to reduce concerns about the CMA and the future of gaming in the UK.
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