UK approves Microsoft's $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard

This clears the way for the two businesses to finalize their transaction.

The $69 billion (£54 billion) acquisition by Microsoft of Activision Blizzard, the company behind Call of Duty and World of Warcraft, has been approved by the UK's competition watchdog. This clears the way for the two businesses to finalize their transaction. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) took action to halt the massive transaction in April due to worries that Microsoft, the company that makes the Xbox game system, would control the emerging cloud gaming sector. Nevertheless, the watchdog stated last month that its worries had been addressed by a revised agreement that includes Activision Blizzard's French rival Ubisoft receiving the rights to utilize cloud games outside of Europe, suggesting the partnership will be authorized.

CEO of the CMA Sarah Cardell stated on Friday that Microsoft could not have a "stranglehold" over cloud gaming, which enables players to stream video games from distant servers onto their devices, thanks to measures taken by the competition regulator. "This timely intervention will make sure that people get more competitive prices, better services, and more choice as cloud gaming continues to expand," Cardell stated. October 18 was the date on which the Activision Blizzard acquisition agreement was supposed to expire. Bobby Kotick, the CEO of Activision Blizzard, informed employees in a memo that the firm was now prepared to complete the deal.