Will there be a giant merger? The European Commission sees no contraindications, but sets conditions

Microsoft wants to spend a trifle $69 billion on the purchase of the American holding company Activision Blizzard, but for this to happen, the company needs approvals from the antitrust authorities that are investigating the case. Activision Blizzard is one of the giants of the gaming world, responsible for e.g. for titles such as “Call of Duty” and “World of Warcraft”, and after this – the largest transaction in the history of the industry – Microsoft will become the third (after Tencent and Sony) largest game publisher.

The European Commission approves the merger of Microsoft and Activision Blizzard

The European Commission initially expressed concerns about the merger, but now it seems to have changed its mind. On Monday, the EC officially approved its consent to carry out a gigantic transaction. As , the decision is the result of an “in-depth investigation” into the planned acquisition of the company by Microsoft. The Commission notes that it based its decision “on hard evidence and extensive information and opinions”, including game developers and distributors. Of course, the consent of the EC is not unconditional. During the investigation, Microsoft declared, among other things, that consumers from the European Economic Area for the next decade will be able to use the streaming of all Activision games in any cloud service.

The EC believes that such a step will bring benefits to consumers, because it will allow them to choose the best game streaming service from the cloud and play on any device. Therefore, according to the EC, the takeover is not to have a negative impact on competition on the market, but it will also give players new opportunities. Moreover, the European office points out that it sees no reason why Microsoft (as a producer of Xbox consoles) would in the future withdraw from publishing Activision games for Sony devices (PlayStation), which is the largest producer of consoles on the market (the EC calculates that For one purchased Xbox there are as many as four PlayStation consoles). European officials also believe that the merger has a chance to stimulate the game streaming market a bit.

The UK does not want to allow the takeover of Activision Blizzard

A different decision on the merger was taken last month by the United Kingdom. UK officials blocked the deal, believing it would undermine healthy competition in the market. Microsoft, after taking control of titles such as “Call of Duty”, “Overwatch” and “World of Warcraft” would control 60-70 percent. cloud gaming market. Microsoft, of course, appealed the decision, but it will take months to consider the case. Regulators in the United States still do not agree to the takeover (Sony also protested against the transaction earlier). Outside the European Union, authorities in Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Chile, Serbia, Japan and South Africa approved the largest merger in the history of the gaming industry. China, South Korea, New Zealand and Australia are still delaying the decision.