Highlights
- Microsoft's Activision Blizzard acquisition has been approved by New Zealand's competition regulatory authority, providing a boost to Microsoft's efforts to close the deal.
- Regulatory bodies like the FTC, CMA, and the EU initially opposed the acquisition, citing concerns about reduced competition in the gaming industry.
- Sony, a major competitor of Microsoft, had been vocal against the deal but eventually signed a 10-year agreement with Microsoft to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation after Microsoft's legal victory.
Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard acquisition has been approved by New Zealand's competition regulatory authority. Microsoft revealed its plans to acquire Activision in January 2022, which was only recently green lit by regulatory authorities across the globe.
When Microsoft expressed its intention to acquire Activision, it faced unprecedented opposition from regulatory bodies like the FTC, CMA, and the EU. All of them argued that this acquisition could result in reduced competition in the gaming industry, and began conducting their own investigations into the matter. However, once the EU approved the Microsoft Activision acquisition, the momentum shifted in Microsoft's favor, where even the FTC is reportedly looking to reach a settlement with the tech giant. Only UK’s CMA is yet to make a decision regarding the acquisition since it chose to block the deal, and now another country has green lit the acquisition providing further boost to Microsoft.
In a statement provided to Press Start, Commission Chair Dr. John Small said that they were not of the view that the Microsoft-Activision acquisition would reduce competition in New Zealand’s gaming market. Furthermore, they also stated that franchises like Call of Duty are important for New Zealand gamers, but their investigation didn’t find them to be “must haves” to compete with Microsoft. Following this approval, Microsoft’s Brad Smith tweeted saying that a total of 41 countries have now approved the Microsoft-Activision acquisition and promised to do everything to close the deal.
Sony, one of Microsoft’s biggest competitors, was quite vocal in its stance against the acquisition and also allegedly met with regulators to convince them to block the deal. It had also rejected all offers from Microsoft to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation, despite Microsoft repeatedly admitting that it wasn’t a sound business move to make it an Xbox exclusive. However, after the court ruled in Microsoft’s favor in its legal battle with the FTC, Sony signed a 10-year deal with Microsoft to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation.
As it stands, the UK is reportedly trying to negotiate a settlement, but is also seeking more input on Microsoft-Activision deal before it gives its final verdict. Microsoft and Activision have also agreed to extend the deadline to close the deal, which was supposed to be completed by July 18, 2023.
Source: Press Start