UK Competition and Markets Authority effectively killed Microsofts acquisition of Activision Blizzard in an unclear yet decisive decision.

I do not see how this decision helps anyone.

Activision Blizzard blasts UK after regulator blocks $75bn Microsoft deal FT

The UK competition regulator has blocked Microsoft’s $75bn acquisition of Activision Blizzard, drawing a furious response from the video games maker, which branded Britain “clearly closed for business”.

The Competition and Markets Authority on Wednesday delivered a potentially fatal blow to Microsoft’s biggest deal by concluding the software giant could make Activision’s games exclusive to its own cloud gaming service.

During the investigation, Microsoft struck 10-year licensing deals with streaming services including Nvidia’s GeForce Now service and Boosteroid, as well as pledging to bring Call of Duty to Nintendo’s Switch, in an attempt to prove that owning Activision would expand the availability of the company’s games, rather than restrict them.

The CMA had provisionally raised concerns in relation to both the cloud gaming market and in the market for games consoles. PlayStation owner Sony, the console market leader, has consistently warned it would be disadvantaged if Microsoft limited availability of one of the industry’s most popular titles.

However, the regulator changed its mind about the risk to the console market after Microsoft highlighted what it said were errors in the CMA’s financial modelling. In its amended provisional findings last month, the CMA said it no longer believed Microsoft had a financial incentive to cut off console rivals’ access to Call of Duty, which has brought in more than $30bn in revenue for Activision over its lifetime.

Additional reporting by Javier Espinoza in Brussels and Arash Massoudi in London

Tags #Activision-Blizzard #microsoft