The Times quotes Gareth Mills on the EU’s approval of the Microsoft-Activision deal
The European Commission has approved, under the EU Merger Regulation, the proposed $68.7 billion (€62.2bn) acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft.
The approval is conditional on full compliance with the commitments offered by Microsoft, and comes three weeks after the UK blocked the deal over concerns it would create issues for the future of the fast-growing cloud gaming market.
Gareth Mills, Partner, comments:
“The divergence of the EU Antitrust regulator’s approval for the Microsoft/ Activision acquisition from the decision of the CMA some three weeks ago may on the face of it seem surprising.
"However, it is worth noting that the EU’s approval is based on Microsoft agreeing to enter into licensing deals with rivals and with other behavioural remedies for future conduct providing regulatory safeguards. The picture is therefore more complex than a binary “approval/ rejection” of the respective regulators that supporters of the deal may seek to imply.
"The saga is unlikely to come to an end anytime soon with a legal complaint refiled last week in the Californian courts by gamers seeking an injunction, as well as Microsoft’s heralded appeal of the CMA’s decision and the US Federal Trade Commission’s case against the acquisition also still pending.”
Read the full article in The Times here.
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