EU Expected to Greenlight Microsoft Acquisition of Activision Blizzard

According to reports, the European Commission is anticipated to approve Microsoft's purchase of Activision Blizzard without requiring the sale of any parts of the company. This decision is based on Microsoft's prior commitments to maintain Call of Duty's availability on various platforms and services owned by other companies, which is expected to alleviate the commission's concerns. A Microsoft spokesperson stated, "Our promise to provide long-term, 100% equal access to Call of Duty for Sony, Steam, NVIDIA, and other companies preserves the deal's benefits for gamers and developers, while also increasing market competition." The European Commission is scheduled to make a ruling on the matter by April 25. If approved, this would leave only two significant regulatory hurdles for the acquisition: an investigation by the UK's Competition and Markets Authority and a lawsuit from the US Federal Trade Commission. The CMA has expressed its preference for a structural solution to address its concerns, suggesting that the Activision and possibly the Blizzard divisions of Activision Blizzard should be sold off before the deal can be approved. However, after a recent hearing before the European Commission, Microsoft president Brad Smith expressed skepticism about the feasibility of separating one part of the company from the rest.