Government approval of Xbox Activision deal "likely to be long and not guaranteed," analyst says

gamesradar.com:

The seismic Microsoft Activision purchase will likely face a long and intense review process for which government approval is "not guaranteed," says analyst David Cole, founder of DFC Intelligence. 

"There will be a great deal to work out here and getting it past government regulators will be a major hurdle," Cole told GamesRadar+. "This includes not just the US, but around the globe where Activision Blizzard products are sold including the European Union, China etc. You also have the issue of market share in the console space, PC space and mobile space to be addressed. The approval process is likely to be long and not guaranteed." 

The biggest purchase in the history of the games industry was announced just hours before the US government revealed a sweeping review of merger guidelines which could tighten, alter, or otherwise complicate the approval process for acquisitions much like this. However, the Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission declined to comment on potential implications for the Activision Blizzard deal specifically, and as Cole said, the US isn't the only country involved here. That said, large tech companies like Microsoft are already more likely to face more intense scrutiny from regulating bodies given Washington's ongoing push for stricter regulations on consolidation in this space, and this deal is more than five times the second-largest purchase in gaming history, so it's sure to raise eyebrows.

Cole previously argued that the Call of Duty franchise, and the potential Xbox exclusivity of it, will be a key factor in the deal's approval. Activision Blizzard has now confirmed that it won't pull existing games from other platforms after the acquisition is finalized, and Sony itself expects