Activision Blizzard Esports Hit With Layoffs As Overwatch League's Future Remains Undecided

While Microsoft sent its final submission to the Consumer Markets Authority in the UK regarding its acquisition of Activision Blizzard, another regular has approved the deal. New Zealand’s Commerce Commission announced its approval, noting its focus on “the importance of Activision games (such as Call of Duty, Overwatch and World of Warcraft) to New Zealand gamers.”

The future of developer Striking Distance has been a bit of an open question recently. Founded by Dead Space co-creator Glen Schofield and backed by PUBG publisher Krafton, the studio launched The Callisto Protocol last year to… less than enthusiastic reviews. Since then, we haven’t heard much about what Striking Distance might be doing next, if anything. Considering the studio was purpose-built to make The Callisto Protocol, what happens when the game doesn’t do so well?

Microsoft has sent a final report to the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) in an effort to persuade the watchdog to overturn its block on the US tech giant's plan to acquire Activision Blizzard.

With the US Federal Trade Commission’s request for an injunction on the Microsoft acquisition of Activision Blizzard denied, approval from the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is the only obstacle left. The latter initially denied the deal, with an appeal set to occur on July 28th, but the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) provided two months for both parties to resolve the same.

Speaking with the publication Transformer World, a Hasbro representative has revealed that Activision Blizzard currently doesn’t know the whereabouts of the source code for the various Transformers games that they were in charge of publishing.

Following victories over the FTC in the United States and other approvals from regulatory bodies in the EU and other locations, Microsoft is trying to convince the UK Competition and Markets Authority ( CMA ) to change its mind and approve the company’s deal to acquire Activision Blizzard. In an unusual step, the CMA is requesting new comments on the deal and will consider them ahead of its final order due next month.

By Tom Warren, a senior editor covering Microsoft, PC gaming, console, and tech. He founded WinRumors, a site dedicated to Microsoft news, before joining The Verge in 2012.

Microsoft's Activision Blizzard deal is back in the hands of Britain's antitrust regulator after an appeals court granted an adjournment, and the grounds for why the UK should reconsider its block on the US software giant's takeover were published.

Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot has commented on Microsoft's takeover bid of Activision Blizzard, stating it validates Ubisoft's decision to expand into mobile gaming.

Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot has said Microsoft’s bid to acquire Activision Blizzard can be viewed as a sign that Ubisoft is on the right track with its current business strategy.

The US Federal Trade Commission has withdrawn its proceedings against Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard. According to IGN, the FTC responded to Microsoft’s motion to withdraw from the recent proceedings with no objections, essentially giving Microsoft the green light to go ahead with its $69 billion acquisition.

By Tom Warrenand Richard Lawler