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.
19.07.2023 - 16:01 / gamespot.com / Jason Fanelli
Layoffs among esports staff and an upcoming vote could spell the end of the OWL.
By Jason Fanelli on
Activision Blizzard released its Q2 2023 financial report today, and among the news of acquisition deal restructuring and record figures for Blizzard thanks to Diablo IV were a few details about the future of the Overwatch League. Unfortunately, none of them paint a positive picture of the league's future.
The financial report details an upcoming vote regarding the future of the league, where each team can vote to continue the league «under an updated operating agreement. If the vote fails, according to the report, „a termination fee of $6 million will be payable to each participating team entity (total fee of approximately $114 million).“
Meanwhile, The Verge has confirmed layoffs in the Activision Blizzard esports department, which have impacted „around 50 employees.“ The layoffs came with no warning, according to one affected ex-employee who wished to remain anonymous, who told The Verge they were a „complete shock to everyone,“ while adding that none of those who were laid off were given the chance to switch to a different team within the company.
The financial report and layoffs follow the exit of the China-based Chendgu Hunters from the league--which was confirmed in June by esports outlet GGRecon--after the game's servers were among those shut down in the country this past January.
»The Chengdu Hunters have exited the Overwatch League," a league representative told GGRecon, who also stated «the organization communicated to the League a shift in their overall strategic objectives, and we wish them well with their new direction.»
The vote on whether to continue the Overwatch League is slated to take place «following the
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.
After one Hasbro rep suggested that Activision Blizzard had lost the hard drives that held the code for the well-loved Transformers games it published, Hasbro's PR is now saying that statement was made in error.
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.
This week's GG WoW video focuses on discussion around whether the recent patch's balance history has led to keys being 'capped' at the levels they were done at during the first 2 weeks of 10.1.5. Though Dratnos and Tettles both agree that no, keys have not been 'capped' with the exception of maybe some of the very highest Neltharus runs, there is still some interesting discussion to be had.
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.
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.
Kotick discussed the deal in a recent interview.
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.
Things are arguably better for Blizzard than they have been for a while given the successful launch of Diablo IV, but what about another game that recently launched, Overwatch 2? Things aren’t so rosy there. Blizzard recently canned the game’s paid PvE component, and according to the latest Activision Blizzard earnings report, despite going free-to-play and delivering a fairly steady cadence of new content, Overwatch 2 is already starting to bleed players.