Europe Confirms When It Will Announce Whether It Approves Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard Purchase

Purchase ActivisionBlizzard on microsoftis estimated at $68.7 billion. will be scrutinized by the European Commission. This was confirmed by the body, which until today had to officially declare what was already taken for granted. Moreover, Microsoft chose not to make commitments that would dispel the doubts of regulators.

The second stage will last 90 working days, and once it is over, a decision will be made whether to approve the acquisition or not. The deadline for determining a future agreement will be March 23, 2023. If the decision is positive, Redmond residents will be able to pursue their idea of ​​completing the process before the end of fiscal year 2023.

Europe will undoubtedly be one of the toughest regulatory hurdles Microsoft will have to overcome. In addition to what is happening in the EU, the UK will also carefully consider the purchase of Activision Blizzard and its implications. And to this we must add what is happening in the United States with the Federal Trade Commission.

In March 2023, Europe will determine whether it approves the purchase of Activision Blizzard

As regards the EU investigation, the authorities They presented the three points that cause them the most concern:

1. That Microsoft is restricting access to Activision Blizzard games on platforms other than Xbox and Windows. This is especially noticeable in the case of AAA titles. Let’s not forget that Sony was the one that most openly criticized the purchase, arguing that it jeopardized the succession of popular franchises such as Call of Duty on the PlayStation.
2. That Microsoft is using this acquisition to benefit Xbox Game Pass by preventing other subscription or cloud gaming services from accessing Activision Blizzard games.
3. Combining Activision Blizzard’s intellectual property with Xbox Game Pass for Windows hurts developers of other operating systems. “This will discourage users from buying computers that do not have Windows installed,” says the European Commission.

Microsoft has denied from the start that it intends to exit Call of Duty from PlayStation; though he acknowledged his idea of ​​bringing the franchise to Game Pass. But it also turned out that his great goal is hit the mobile games market hard.

We’ll have to see how this story continues. European Competition Commissioner, Margret Vestager, cited the need to investigate the purchase of Activision Blizzard. “We must ensure that opportunities continue for current and future distributors of PC and console video games, as well as competing providers of PC operating systems. The goal is to keep the gaming ecosystem active for the benefit of gamers.” an industry that is developing at a rapid pace,” he said.

Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard, also expressed his opinion on this issue and assured that his company will cooperate with the European Commission. “With so many major global companies now competing in the nearly $200 billion video game industry, it’s understandable that regulators are trying to better understand the gaming business,” he said.