Microsoft signing 10-year cloud gaming deals with other companies helped convince the EU to erase the deal.
“No one doubts that this was a landmark transaction in the gaming industry.
Gaming is a dynamic market that impacts millions of consumers in Europe.
So the deal deserved a thorough investigation.
Microsoft has said this would be a disastrous decision considering how much money Call of Duty makes on PlayStation.
“Cloud gaming deserved an in-depth assessment.
“And why did we do this instead of blocking the merger?
Well, to us, this solution fully addressed our concerns.
And on top of that, it had significant procompetitive effects,” she said.
This actually is better for competition, not worse, Vestager said.
And that is because it unlocked the potential of the cloud market,” she said.
“Our mission is to accompany that transition, one merger at a time.
“That is our Call of Duty.”
The Federal Trade Commission in the US will conduct a hearing in early August 2023 to discuss the sale.
Microsoft’s biggest acquisition ever was LinkedIn, which it acquired in 2016 for $26.2 billion.
The Activision Blizzard deal is 2.5x bigger than that.
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