Great news for Microsoft! UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) decided to focus its probe of the tech giant's proposed acquisition of video game publisher Activision Blizzard on fewer issues instead.
This is a partial victory for Microsoft after it recently triumphed in a private consumer antitrust case filed by a group of gamers.
As it seeks to grow its video gaming industry, the Washington-based corporate behemoth has made many massive purchases in the gaming industry, including ZeniMax Media, the parent company of Bethesda Softworks.
Concerns in Cloud Gaming Sector
In February, CMA released preliminary conclusions from its investigation into the merger, noting that the deal might lead to higher pricing, fewer options, and less innovation. The regulator expressed worry that there would be a significant reduction in competition in the console gaming sector as a result of the merger.
The agency has since received "a significant amount" of comments from stakeholders in the sector over the proposed transaction. The CMA has revised its original finding that the acquisition will harm console gaming competition in light of the additional information, as reported by CNBC.
According to Martin Coleman, chair of the independent panel of experts conducting the CMA investigation, "Having considered the additional evidence provided, we have now provisionally concluded that the merger will not result in a substantial lessening of competition in console gaming services."
He asserted that nothing about the recent announcement changes their preliminary opinion that the deal raises concerns in the cloud gaming sector. "Our investigation remains on course for completion by the end of April."
The watchdog's final verdict is set on April 26.
Rival or ally?
The US tech giant has won over several firms who were previously opposed to or on the fence about the transaction before the CMA announcement.
The deal raised serious worries among Microsoft's rivals, who feared that Microsoft would forfeit the right to distribute Activision's flagship series, Call of Duty. Microsoft said last month that they had entered into a binding 10-year legal agreement with Nintendo to release Call of Duty on the Nintendo Switch on the same day as Microsoft's Xbox.
In addition, Microsoft has an agreement with Nvidia to make Xbox games available via GeForce Now. If the deal goes through, Microsoft also plans to add the Activision games collection to Nvidia's service. Reportedly, Nvidia opposed Microsoft's acquisition of Activision.
Sony, the company behind the PlayStation system, is Microsoft's largest competitor, but the two companies have yet to form an alliance.
Microsoft president Brad Smith once revealed that the corporation was proposing to Sony the same deal it had given to Nintendo, namely, the simultaneous release of Call of Duty on PlayStation and Xbox with all the same features. The merger still has Sony's opposition.
According to Bloomberg, all significant corporations have not fully accepted the acquisition. This includes Google's parent company, Alphabet.
