EU may soon greenlight Activision-Blizzard deal – t3n – Digital Pioneers

According to media reports, Microsoft is said to have prepared a concession package for EU authorities as early as November 2022. (Photo: Shutterstock/Sergei Elagin)

Microsoft’s fight for “Call of Duty” publisher Activision Blizzard may soon enter a final, decisive round. After months of hearings before regulators around the world, the tech company has made concessions, at least before EU antitrust authorities, that could lead to a decision for the foreseeable future.

Among other things, the group is ready to offer licensing agreements to competitors in order to allay existing competition concerns. According to consistent reports, some contracts have already been signed with video game platforms. However, there are no plans to sell the lucrative “Call of Duty” franchise to Activision or even to break up Activision Blizzard.

According to a report by the European Union Competition Authority Reuters news agency, is now gathering feedback from competitors and consumers before making its decision on May 22. With this deadline in place, the European Union has postponed the current provisional deadline by another ten days for the second time.

Companies such as Sony and Nintendo, which compete with their own consoles Playstation and Switch Microsoft Xbox, will be affected by the acquisition of the game publisher from Microsoft. One of the many concerns was that after the successful acquisition, popular Activision games such as “World of Warcraft” or “Guitar Hero” were no longer available to Japanese manufacturers.

After the current official initiative with the corresponding perks, there is, among other things, a description Handelsblatt Insiders assess “good prospects for a green light from the EU” for the $69 billion deal.

The proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard is Microsoft’s tenth acquisition being reviewed by the EU – nine of which have been approved. “So while EU lawmakers or regulators are not formally bound by similar precedents as the US common law system, Microsoft’s record of getting M&A activity across the finish line on the Old Continent is fairly impeccable,” reads the portal’s assessment. player.