Last updated: February 04, 2023, 5:42 PM IST
EU and FTC suggest that Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard could negatively impact competition in the gaming industry.
The European Union has issued a formal antitrust warning to Microsoft regarding its acquisition of gaming company Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion.
Microsoft has formally received an antitrust warning from the European Union over its $68.7 billion bid for gaming giant Activision Blizzard, the media reported.
According to sources in Politico, the objections were sent to the tech giant this week.
The report stated that EU officials set out in a “Statement of Objections” the reasons why the deal could threaten fair competition in the video game market.
A Microsoft spokesperson said they are committed to resolving issues and finding a path forward for this deal.
“We are listening carefully to the concerns of the European Commission and are confident that we can address them,” said the company’s spokesperson.
Earlier this month, Microsoft removed an aggressive argument against the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) it filed last December when the agency sued the tech giant for acquiring leading video game developer Activision Blizzard.
According to Axios, Microsoft said it made a “mistake” when it claimed that “the structure of the FTC violates the U.S. Constitution.”
A Microsoft spokesperson said the “FTC has an important mission to protect competition and consumers, and we quickly updated our response to omit language that suggests otherwise based on the Constitution.
In its lawsuit, the FTC said the deal, the largest ever in the video game industry, would allow Microsoft to stifle competitors from its Xbox gaming consoles and its burgeoning subscription content and cloud gaming business.
“Microsoft has already shown that it can and will withhold content from its gaming rivals. Today, we are trying to prevent Microsoft from taking control of a leading independent game studio and using it to harm competition in multiple dynamic and fast-growing gaming markets,” Holly Vedova, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition, said in a statement.
Microsoft president Brad Smith said they have been working since “Day One to address competition concerns, including offering proposed concessions to the FTC earlier this week.”
In September, the UK’s market watchdog announced an in-depth investigation into Microsoft’s all-cash deal to acquire gaming giant Activision Blizzard if its antitrust concerns are not met.
The British Competition and Markets Authority will publish its preliminary findings this month.
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and was published from a syndicated news agency feed)
