Major hurdles still lie ahead
The Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine has offered its approval for Microsoft’s proposed $68 billion purchase of Call of Duty publisher Activision Blizzard, adding the country to an increasing list of territories that have stated they will allow the controversial merger to take place.
As noted by GamesIndustry.biz, the Ukraine Anitimonopoly Commission stated that it had little concern or fear of any consumer fallout from the deal, especially regarding the subject of the cloud gaming market, which has been a sticking point in decision-making for certain regulatory bodies.
“Microsoft Corporation and Activision Blizzard, Inc. do not carry out economic activity in the field of cloud gaming services in Ukraine,” reads a translated statement. “The concerns expressed by the [EU Commission] and the reasons for the prohibition of concentration in Great Britain are not relevant for assessing its impact on the dynamics of competition in Ukraine.”
“Taking into account the above-mentioned factors, the Committee allowed the specified concentration.”
Ukraine’s referencing of Great Britain refers to the investigation result offered by The UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) on the morning of April 26, where it voted not to approve Microsoft’s proposal and placed arguably the biggest hurdle in the plan’s path to date. Microsoft intends to appeal the CMA’s decision. In August, Microsoft will also be required to face down a lawsuit from the United States’ Federal Trade Commission (FTC) which has remained steadfastly in opposition to the Activision Blizzard purchase since its initial announcement back in January 2022.
Ukraine approves Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard [GamesIndustry.biz]
Published: May 1, 2023 10:30 am