Microsoft- Activision: new proposal for the antitrust authorities
22. August 2023Microsoft- Activision: new proposal for the antitrust authorities
San Francisco, 8/22/2023
Microsoft has unveiled a new proposal to acquire Activision Blizzard after its original bid was blocked by UK regulators.
As part of the revised agreement, Microsoft agreed to give up cloud streaming rights to most Activision games, including the Call of Duty franchise, for the next 15 years to compete with Ubisoft Entertainment.
The restructured deal has sparked a new UK regulatory inquiry, a decision on which is expected by October 18.
The proposal aims to address antitrust authorities‘ concerns about reduced competition in cloud gaming.
The change means that if Microsoft is awarded a deal, it will not acquire cloud rights to current Activision PC and console games or any upcoming games to be published by Activision over the next 15 years, excluding parts of Europe.
Instead, the rights will be transferred to the French game manufacturer Ubisoft.
The deal also commits Microsoft to providing versions of games on non-Windows operating systems.
Microsoft, which first proposed its $69 billion acquisition of Activision in January 2022, has encountered regulatory hurdles in the US, Europe and the UK.
EU regulators have since approved the deal, while attempts by the US competition regulator to block it through a court filing have been unsuccessful.
