Lies of P may have only recently dropped, but already we have confirmation that DLC is about to go into production.
22.09.2023 - 12:37 / gamingbolt.com / Brad Smith
With the United States’ FTC having failed to make a strong enough case to block Microsoft’s proposed $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, the United Kingdom’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) remains among the last major stumbling blocks that the deal needs to clear, and all parties involved have now taken another significant step towards resolution.
The CMA and Microsoft entered into negotiations regarding a restructured deal in July, and following Microsoft’s newest submission, the regulatory body has revealed in a statement that it has “provisionally concluded” that the remedies put forward by Microsoft address many of the issues the regulator had with the deal in its original form.
In particular, the CMA says Microsoft’s decision to sell cloud streaming rights for Activision Blizzard content to Ubisoft is a major deciding factor.
“The sale of Activision’s cloud streaming rights to Ubisoft will prevent this important content – including games such as Call of Duty, Overwatch, and World of Warcraft – from coming under the control of Microsoft in relation to cloud gaming,” the CMA says. “The CMA originally found that Microsoft already has a strong position in cloud gaming services and could have used its control over Activision content to stifle competition and reinforce this position. The new deal instead results in the cloud streaming rights for Activision’s games being transferred to an independent player, Ubisoft, maintaining open competition as the market for cloud gaming develops over the coming years.”
The CMA says it still has “limited residual concerns that certain provisions in the sale of Activision’s cloud streaming rights to Ubisoft could be circumvented, terminated, or not enforced”, but Microsoft has, in response, provided further remedies “to ensure that the terms of the sale of Activision’s rights to Ubisoft are enforceable by the CMA”. The regulator has now opened a consultation to go over these remedies until October 6.
The deadline for the proposed acquisition’s final approval is October 18, and in a statement on Twitter, Microsoft president Brad Smith has said that the company is “encouraged” by the recent positive developments in the CMA’s review process.
“We presented solutions that we believe fully address the CMA’s remaining concerns related to cloud game streaming, and we will continue to work toward earning approval to close prior to the October 18 deadline,” Smith wrote.
We are encouraged by this positive development in the CMA’s review process. We presented solutions that we believe fully address the CMA’s remaining concerns related to cloud game streaming, and we will continue to work toward earning approval to close prior to the October 18…
— Brad Smith
Lies of P may have only recently dropped, but already we have confirmation that DLC is about to go into production.
According to a new report by The Verge, Microsoft's long acquisition struggle to own Activision Blizzard should be over next week.
Microsoft's $68.7 billion acquisition of Call of Duty and World of Warcraft publisher Activision Blizzard might be coming to a particularly spooky conclusion. Sources close to the deal have told The Verge that the long, knock-down drag-out process might conclude on Friday October 13.
Microsoft's long journey to acquire gaming giant Activision Blizzard is finally nearing an end. According to The Verge, a source familiar with Microsoft's plans indicated that it was aiming for Friday, October 13, as a date to close the deal. Ignoring the infamy of the date (it seems Microsoft and Activision Blizzard executives aren't very superstitious), it's not a surprising day to choose. Back in July, the two parties in the deal jointly agreed to extend the deadline of their agreement to October 18 in order to sort out any further regulatory concerns. At the time of publishing, that date is only twelve days away, so the deal would have to be closed soon.
The saga of Microsoft’s proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard has dragged on for nearly two years at this point, but after having cleared several major regulatory hurdles, it seems like the $69 billion deal is edging closer to being finalized.
Microsoft is planning to officially close its $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard on Friday, October 13, according to sources cited by The Verge.
Remedy Entertainment has an excellent track record with music and audio design in its releases, so expectations from Alan Wake 2 are naturally high on that front. And according to the developer, the survival horror sequel isn’t going to disappoint.
The FTC has once again resumed its case against Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard, after a pause over the summer.
After previously withdrawing the same, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced that it will move forward with its in-house trial against Microsoft regarding the acquisition of Activision Blizzard. This is after failing to file an injunction to halt the same and its appeal for the case being denied.
FIFA 23 has been delisted on all storefronts, now only available to pick up through an EA Play subscription. This comes before its replacement, EA Sports FC 24, even launches, now only available in early access.
British regulators on Friday dropped their objections to Microsoft's attempt to buy video game firm Activision Blizzard, the maker of "Call of Duty", paving the way for the US tech titan to close one of the biggest technology acquisitions ever.
There have been several cancelled Pokémon games that have never seen the light of day, forever trapped in shadowy Pokéballs waiting in Nintendo’s offices somewhere. Now, one lost Pokémon game has returned to the internet and is fully playable for all.