The acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft is far from over, because the national antitrust authorities in the various markets still have to give their approval. In Brazil there was now a victory for Microsoft.
The scramble for Microsoft’s takeover of Activision Blizzard never ends. Above all, the possibility that Call of Duty might no longer appear on the Playstation worries the antitrust authorities, of course goaded by Sony, who never miss an opportunity to complain about the takeover.
In Brazil, Microsoft has now achieved at least one victory, as the authorities there have now given their okay without restrictions, as the second country after Saudi Arabia. Of course, the deal is far from secure, but the arguments of the Brazilian authorities could be groundbreaking, especially due to the reasoning by the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE).
The CADE used Steam and Nintendo Switch, clearly explaining why the possibility that Call of Duty could no longer appear on Playstation is not an argument to smash the deal.
“The absence of Call of Duty in recent years”, according to the CADE report, “has not prevented Steam from occupying a leading position in the ranking of digital stores”, especially in the Brazilian market. Regarding the Switch, CADE says that “the importance of Activision Blizzard’s games” to the platform’s success is “minimal”. The CADE also did not accept Sony’s objections. The CADE is there to protect the interests of Brazilian customers and not those of a specific competitor.
It cannot be ruled out that other authorities will agree with this reasoning. The British investigation, which has just entered the second phase and should deliver a result by the beginning of next year, is currently being viewed with great interest.