Brazil’s Administrative Council for Economic Defense, CADE, has given the country’s approval for Microsoft to move forward with the planned Activision Blizzard acquisition. This surely comes as welcome news to Microsoft, which still faces regulatory hurdles in multiple countries before the acquisition can be completed.Microsoft announced its intention to purchase the game development and publishing juggernaut Activision Blizzard in January of 2022, a deal that would make it the third-largest gaming company in the world. In the months following the announcement of the planned acquisition, Microsoft has faced regulatory hurdles as it seeks the necessary approval in multiple countries to proceed with the deal. This approval by CADE means the proposed deal is now one step closer to becoming a reality, though European and UK regulators still have concerns about Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard.Announced in a tweet by senior editor at The Verge Tom Warren, CADE has given approval for the Microsoft acquisition to move forward without restrictions. In the document approving the acquisition, Brazilian regulators state that their decision was made for the good of Brazilian consumers and “not the defense of the particular interests of specific competitors.” The mention of competitive interests could be a response to Sony Interactive Entertainment’s CEO Jim Ryan’s repeated claims that the Activision Blizzard acquisition would be unfair to PlayStation gamers. Ryan reportedly flew to Brussels recently to speak to EU regulators about the Activision Blizzard acquisition and the effect it could have on the Call of Duty franchise’s future on PlayStation.
The reaction from gamers to Microsoft’s proposed Activision Blizzard acquisition has been mixed, to put it mildly. Users of Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass service have generally reacted positively towards the acquisition and the flood of titles it could potentially bring to the service, while Sony’s Jim Ryan and many PlayStation gamers have expressed concerns that the acquisition could stifle competition in the gaming industry by limiting popular franchises like Call of Duty to Microsoft platforms. Despite the concerns from regulators, competitors, and some gamers, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella recently stated that he is “very confident” the Activision Blizzard acquisition will go through as planned.
In an era where developers and publishers are becoming increasingly consolidated under a handful of companies, such as Sony’s recent acquisition of Halo and Destiny developer Bungie, the Activision Blizzard acquisition represents one of the largest deals to date. While some gamers have criticized Sony’s claims that Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard acquisition would be anti-competitive, citing Sony’s long history of purchasing developers and making its games PlayStation exclusives, there are some valid concerns about having so many top-tier developers under the ownership of the console manufacturers. As this acquisition now moves closer to becoming a reality, many gamers are still wondering what effect it will have on the gaming landscape moving forward.