FTC Challenges Decision That Would Allow Microsoft’s Acquisition of Activision to Progress
The Federal Trade Commission is persisting in its efforts to block Microsoft’s planned acquisition of Activision Blizzard, valued at $68.7 billion. The agency has filed an appeal against Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley’s decision to reject their request for a temporary injunction to halt the completion of the deal.
The FTC has sued to prevent the merger from happening on antitrust grounds. The administrative trial starts in August, but the deadline for the merger of the companies is July 18. The agency was concerned that Microsoft and Activision would close their deal by then, despite the UK regulator blocking the deal in that country.
Bloomberg first reported that the agency was considering appealing Corley’s decision. The FTC told ReturnByte after Tuesday’s ruling that it will announce “its next steps to continue the fight to preserve competition and protect consumers” in the coming days.
Corley ruled that the temporary restraining order currently preventing Microsoft and Activision from doing business will be lifted unless the FTC receives an emergency stay from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on July 14. The restraining order was in effect until Corley made a decision on the preliminary injunction.
Meanwhile, following Corley’s ruling, Microsoft, Activision Blizzard and the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority said they agreed to suspend their legal battle and see if they could reach a compromise. The CMA later clarified that while “the merging parties will not have the opportunity to submit new remedies after the publication of the final report, they may choose to restructure the contract”. It added that this could lead to another merger investigation, likely delaying the takeover beyond July 18.
