Microsoft has faced a lot of backlash over its planned acquisition of Activision Blizzard, but at least things seem to be turning for the better. The European Commission now seems to want to approve the deal after all.
Many antitrust authorities around the world have to approve the planned takeover of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft so that the deal can actually go through – but Microsoft has had to face a lot of headwind on this point. While some smaller markets have agreed, there have been many concerns, particularly in the US, Europe and the UK.
With regard to the EU, there have been reports in the past that approval of the deal is to be refused – but the situation here seems to have changed fundamentally in the meantime. At least that’s what sources familiar with the matter are reporting to the renowned magazine Reuters. Accordingly, the European Commission should approve the deal without having to meet the conditions previously brought into play.
Specifically, it was probably negotiated whether Microsoft would have to sell large brands belonging to Activision Blizzard, such as Call of Duty, so that they would remain independent in the future. Under this condition, the Commission would have allegedly agreed – but it is now apparently doing so without such an IP sale.
When asked, a Microsoft spokesman commented on this and emphasized that they were working on “effective and easy-to-implement solutions that would solve the concerns of the European Commission”. In particular, one wants to ensure in the long term that Call of Duty is 100 percent equivalent to the competitors “Sony, Steam, NVIDIA and others”.
In the USA, too, something had recently moved in favor of Microsoft after the FTC granted a request that Microsoft be allowed to see Sony PlayStation’s exclusivity agreements in order to be able to defend itself against Sony’s allegations in a procedure planned for the summer.
This short video recaps the main announcements from last night’s Developer_Direct for you.
