. However, that deadline has since passed, and the deal still isn't done. This is primarily because the CMA (Competitions and Markets Authority) remains the last obstacle that Microsoft hopes to remove, resolving its issues through the aid of an extension. Up until a few days ago, the agreement between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard had stipulated that if the former couldn't secure approval from worldwide regulators for the purchase, the latter could walk away and receive a $3 billion penalty fee from the Xbox maker in the process. That's seemingly not an option being discussed, though, not with Head of Xbox Phil Spencer taking to Twitter to explain that the deadline has been extended while it works out a way to gain approval in the UK. 'Microsoft and Activision Blizzard have extended the merger agreement deadline to 10/18,' explained Spencer in a tweet yesterday, revealing that he and the leadership team now has until October 18, 2023, to lay the CMA's fears to rest. 'We're optimistic about getting this done, and excited about bringing more games to more players everywhere.' None of this guarantees that the Microsoft Activision deal will absolutely go through, of course, but three extra months to further work with the CMA on getting it passed on UK shores is a sure-fire indication of how Phil Spencer and co. are to seeing it th){kind=link}
All hope isn’t lost for the Microsoft Activision deal, especially since a new deadline has been negotiated
Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard looks set to pass its last hurdle very soon, as extra time has been added for the CMA’s concerns to be ironed out.
Following news earlier this month that the FTC’s preliminary injunction against Microsoft’s attempt to welcome Activision Blizzard into the Xbox first-party family was rejected by a judge in a US Federal Court, all signs pointed towards the Microsoft Activision deal finally being passed through before its July 18, 2023, deadline (but without UK regulator approval). However, that deadline has since passed, and the deal still isn’t done. This is primarily because the CMA (Competitions and Markets Authority) remains the last obstacle that Microsoft hopes to remove, resolving its issues through the aid of an extension.
Up until a few days ago, the agreement between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard had stipulated that if the former couldn’t secure approval from worldwide regulators for the purchase, the latter could walk away and receive a $3 billion penalty fee from the Xbox maker in the process. That’s seemingly not an option being discussed, though, not with Head of Xbox Phil Spencer taking to Twitter to explain that the deadline has been extended while it works out a way to gain approval in the UK.
“Microsoft and Activision Blizzard have extended the merger agreement deadline to 10/18,” explained Spencer in a tweet yesterday, revealing that he and the leadership team now has until October 18, 2023, to lay the CMA’s fears to rest. “We’re optimistic about getting this done, and excited about bringing more games to more players everywhere.”