Video Gamer is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Prices subject to change. Learn more
Xbox has won its ongoing court case and has defeated the US Federal Trade Commission’s attempt to block its $68.7 billion dollar deal to buy Call of Duty publisher Activision Blizzard.
As per Bloomberg (paywalled), judge Jacqueline Scott Corley denied the FTC’s attempt to block the deal, meaning it can now go ahead to close the merger in the US and almost all locations except for the UK, which vetoed the merger back in May of this year. Over on Twitter, Xbox’s Phil Spencer had the following statement on the ruling:
We’re greatful to the court for swiftly deciding in our favour. The evidence showed the Activision Blizzard deal is good for the industry and the FTC’s claims about console switching, multi-game subscription services and cloud don’t reflect the realities of the gaming market. Since we first announced this deal, our commitment to bringing more games to more people on more devices has only grown. We’ve signed multiple agreements to make Activision Blizzard’s games, Xbox first party games and Game Pass all available to more players than they are today. We know that players around the world have been watching this case closely and I’m proud of our efforts to expand player access and choice throughout this journey.”
FTC spokesman Douglas Farrar did comment on the ruling to Bloomberg, however, saying in an email that they were “disappointed in this outcome given the clear threat this merger poses to open competition in cloud gaming, subscription services and consoles. In the coming days, we’ll be announcing our next step to continue our fight to preserve competition and protect consumers.”
The decision means the potential Xbox and Activision Blizzard merger now has approval in the US, the EU, South Africa, Japan, Chile, Brazil, Saudi Arabia and Serbia to name a few. The UK now appears to be the major sticking point, but there may be movement on that front too, following a statement from Microsoft vice chair and president Brad Smith.
“After today’s court decision in the US, our focus now turns back to the UK. While we ultimately disagree with the CMA’s concerns, we are considering how the transaction might be modified in order to address those concerns in a way that is acceptable to the CMA. In order to prioritize work on these proposals, Microsoft and Activision have agreed with the CMA that a stay of the litigation in the UK would be in the public interest, and the parties have made a joint submission to the Competition Appeal Tribunal to this effect.”
Call of Duty has been a huge sticking point in the negotiations, and the court case which has been ongoing for several weeks included some interesting revelations. This also included the titbit that it looks like Call of Duty 2023 will release in November, according to the federal judge presiding over the hearing. We also got word of what may be the PlayStation Q price during the hearing.
Microsoft first announced its intention to buy Activision all the way back in January of last year, and the FTC declared it was moving to stop the deal in December of that same year.
No products found.
