The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) wants more time to investigate Microsoft's deal with Activision.
The UK competition regulator recently announced it had decided to extend its investigation into Microsoft's acquisition of Activision due to the former's arguments for it.
The CMA's decision follows Microsoft's win against the US' Federal Trade Commission (FTC) after it recently attempted to block the deal between the two companies.
CMA Extension Details
The CMA mentioned in its announcement that it had found it had insufficient time remaining in the statutory period for full and proper consideration of Microsoft's arguments for its merger to push through.
According to the British regulator, its Inquiry Group considers that there are special reasons to extend its allotted period to consider Microsoft's arguments by six weeks under section 41A(2) of the Enterprise Act 2022, the period for the discharge of its duty under section 41(2) of the Act. As such, it will provide a decision on whether Microsoft could push through with its acquisition of Activision by Aug. 29, though it aims to do so earlier if possible.
The CMA's decision to extend its investigation into Microsoft's arguments follows its decision to pause its legal battle with Microsoft to allow the company to negotiate a compromise that could allow its acquisition deal with Activision to push through, per Engadget. Likewise, the pause came on the same day US Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley rejected the FTC's request for a preliminary injunction to prevent Microsoft from acquiring Activision for $68.7 billion.
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Had Judge Corley allowed the FTC's request, Microsoft and Activision would've abandoned the acquisition deal they signed. However, the judge stated that Microsoft is unlikely to cause harm to its competitors; it would do the opposite instead with more consumer access to Call of Duty and other Activision content.
The extension is a win for Microsoft and Activision. The CMA is the only major regulator left in the world to oppose the acquisition deal between the two companies. It previously stated it had to block Microsoft's acquisition of Activision because the solutions Microsoft presented had "significant shortcomings" and would require mandatory oversight from the watchdog itself.
The CMA also blocked the deal because the evidence Microsoft showed puts the company in a commercially beneficial position to make Activision's games exclusive to its cloud gaming service. Not only that, but the acquisition deal would reinforce Microsoft's advantage in the market by giving it control over important gaming content.
A Quick History Of The CMA's Legal Battle With Microsoft
For a time, the CMA is the first and only competition regulator willing to block Microsoft's acquisition of Activision. It stated in Aug. 2022 that it believes the deal may negatively affect the UK market by "a substantial lessening of competition."
The CMA made this decision despite Microsoft's promises the deal won't harm competition, particularly Sony. Since then, Microsoft embarked on a campaign to further convince regulators worldwide of the benefits the deal brings to the gaming industry and community in general.
The EU's European Commission was among the first to give Microsoft its approval to acquire Activision following the CMA's decision to block it due to its concerns. This decision was eventually followed by the FTC's decision to block Microsoft's acquisition of Activision.
Related Article: Microsoft Says CMA Erred in Blocking Activision Acquisition
