Microsoft’s Activision deal will harm gamers in the UK according to watchdog. Regulators all over the world are all concerned that the purchase by the tech company will make Microsoft just too powerful in the gaming industry.
Microsoft’s Activision Deal Will Harm Gamers in the UK
On Wednesday, the UK’s competition watchdog said that the planned acquisition of Activision Blizzard will very much likely harm gamers.
The merger will likely increase the power of Microsoft n clod gaming, thus harming gamers in the UK who cannot afford expensive consoles, the UK’s competition markets Authority (CMA) in a statement said. There also is a big chance of the deal weakening the rivalry that is between Microsoft Xbox and Sony’s PlayStation game consoles, the watchdog additionally said.
Back in January 2022, leaders at Microsoft and Activision announced the $68.7 billion all-cash deal. And if the acquisition in question goes ahead, it will give Microsoft control over one of the biggest video game companies in the globe. But the deal however is facing threats on many fronts, with the FTC in the United States and the EU’s Competition Commission also expressing concerns that the acquisition would give Microsoft outsized power thus leading to an uncompetitive gaming industry.
CMA’s Assertion of the Development
“Our job is to make sure that UK gamers are not caught in the crossfire of global deals that, over time, could damage competition and result in higher prices, fewer choices, or less innovation,” chair of the CMA’s independent panel of experts, martin Coleman in a statement said. “We have provisionally found that this may be the case here.”
Corporate vice president and deputy general counsel of Microsoft Rima Alaily in a statement said that the firm is offering effective and easily enforceable solutions that will address all of the concerns of CMA.
Microsoft’s Response to the Development
“Our commitment to grant long-term 100% equal access to Call of Duty to Sony, Nintendo, Steam, and others preserves the deal’s benefits to gamers and developers and increases competition in the market,” Alaily said. “When we say equal, we mean equal. 10 years of parity. On content. On pricing. On features. On quality. On playability.”
The solutions provided by the CMA include spinning off the part of Activision that makes the flagship game Call of Duty, or separating Activision from Blizzard completely. Microsoft will now have a couple of weeks to submit its very own suggested solutions for review to the CMA.
Activision’s Statement Regarding the Issue
An Activision spokesperson in a statement said: “We hope between now and April we will be able to help the CMA better understand our industry to ensure they can achieve their stated mandate to promote an environment where people can be confident they are getting great choices and fair deals, where competitive, fair-dealing business can innovate and thrive, and where the whole UK economy can grow productively and sustainably.”
