EU approves Microsoft's $68.7bn Activision Blizzard bid
Microsoft's stalled Activision Blizzard buyout received some positive news today, as the EU offered its approval.
The European Commission had been one of three major regulators standing in the way of the deal, alongside the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) — the latter of which dramatically blocked the deal last month, dealing a sizable blow to it succeeding overall. Microsoft is now set to appeal that decision.
In Brussels, however, it's better news for Microsoft — after a couple of concessions ended up winning over EU regulators.
Cruically, the EU has given the nod to the deal after securing agreements to lessen its potential impact on the emerging cloud gaming market — the main sticking point with the UK's regulator.
This includes a free license for European gamers to stream any Activision Blizzard game they own via any cloud gaming service of their choice, and a free license for cloud gaming services in the region to host said games on their platform.
The EU ultimately dismissed its earlier concerns around the deal's potential to harm rival console makers (ie. Sony, Nintendo) and game subscription services (such as PlayStation Plus).
Ultimately, the EU decided Microsoft was unlikely to pull Activision Blizzard games like Call of Duty from rival consoles as it would see its profits suffer as a result (an argument Microsoft itself repeatedly put forward).
However, the EU also decided that even if Microsoft did pull Call of Duty from PlayStation, Sony would still be able to remain competitive. It would simply «leverage its size, extensive games catalogue and market position to fend off any attempt to weaken its competitive position», the European Commission
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