The preliminary conclusions of the investigation have fallen.
The CMA had previously expressed concern about the potential impact on the contest on console games and cloud gaming services in the UK. However, after considering new evidence, the CMA updated its interim findings and now believes the merger will not materially lessen competition on console game services.
The most significant new evidence relates to Microsoft’s financial incentives for Activision-Blizzard games, such as Call of Duty, are exclusive to their own consoles. While CMA’s initial analysis suggested that this strategy would be profitable, new evidence shows that in fact, would be deficient in all plausible scenarios
However, the CMA remains concerned about Cloud gaming competition and research continues. The CMA Chair emphasized the importance of interim findings, which allow interested parties to provide additional evidence before making a decision. It is expected that the final report is published before April 26, 2023
The final tentative conclusion reads as follows: “We have tentatively concluded that, while such strategies may degrade PlayStation’s offering to some degree, they would not materially affect its ability to compete. Thus, we have tentatively concluded that Microsoft would not have the ability to compete. ‘exclude PlayStation via partial exclusion strategies using CoD.’
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