Microsoft has reportedly overcome a significant regulatory hurdle in finalizing its $69 billion purchase of Activision Blizzard, as its licensing offers to competitors are expected to alleviate EU antitrust concerns about the deal. The EU previously raised concerns that the acquisition could “significantly reduce competition” in PC, console, and cloud gaming. However, Microsoft’s licensing agreements are expected to alleviate such concerns.
According to Reuters, the EU is not expected to require the divestment of assets to approve the deal. While the potential sale of Call of Duty has been a point of contention, Microsoft plans to keep the property while using licensing agreements to ease regulatory concerns. Microsoft has committed to ensuring that the franchise remains on competing platforms for at least ten years after the acquisition, even bringing Call of Duty to Nintendo consoles.
Microsoft has pledged to offer “effective and easily enforceable solutions” that address the European Commission’s concerns. “Our commitment to grant long-term 100% equal access to Call of Duty to Sony, Steam, NVIDIA, and others preserves the deal’s benefits to gamers and developers and increases competition in the market,” a Microsoft spokesperson told Reuters.
Microsoft announced the acquisition in January 2022 to compete with industry leaders Tencent and Sony while developing its own take on the metaverse. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said that gaming is the most dynamic and exciting category in entertainment across all platforms and will play a key role in the development of metaverse platforms.
However, Microsoft still needs to address the concerns of the US Federal Trade Commission and UK regulators before the deal can be finalized. The company has until July to resolve the antitrust concerns, or it may have to renegotiate or abandon the acquisition, resulting in a breakup fee of up to $3 billion.
