The European Commission approved the largest deal in the gaming industry for the acquisition by Microsoft Corporation, which produces the Xbox game consoles, of the developer of computer games Activision Blizzard for $69 billion, RBC reports with reference to Bloomberg.
The EC believes that the deal will not affect competition as Microsoft will allow other gaming companies (such as Sony, which makes PlayStation consoles) to have access to Activision Blizzard products for ten years. According to the head of the EU antitrust law Margrethe Vestager, the deal will “launch” the cloud gaming market, which currently accounts for 1-3% of the entire gaming market.
Microsoft has confirmed that it will comply with the EC’s requirement to license “popular Activision Blizzard games to competing cloud gaming services.” The company said the games will be available to users “on whatever device they choose,” according to The New York Times.
Games developed by Activision Blizzard include Warcraft, Diablo, Call of Duty, Overwatch, Candy Crush, and more.
However, the approval of the EU does not mean that the deal will take place in the near future, Bloomberg points out. Microsoft faces litigation in the US and the UK as antitrust regulators in those countries (UK CMA and US FTC) blocked the deal. Microsoft promised to challenge these decisions.
In Washington, they said they were afraid of denials to competitors by new owners in access to game content. In London, it was suggested that the deal would harm the cloud gaming market and the diversity of choice for players.
Microsoft announced its decision to acquire Activision Blizzard back in January last year. Corporations must move the rights to iconic gaming franchises and host esports through Major League Gaming.
The deal was expected to close this year. Microsoft, if acquired by Activision, would become the third largest gaming company in the world by revenue after Tencent and Sony.
Source: Rosbalt
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