Microsoft ‘Gamers Lawsuit’ Dismissed: “No Reasonable Probability of Anticompetitive Effects in Any Market”

wccftech.com:

Remember that lawsuit that was filed by a group of "gamers" last year? Well, it has recently concluded with a dismissal by Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley. The grounds behind the dismissal state that the complaint made by the plaintiffs can not plausibly allege that the current Activision Blizzard deal will create a reasonable probability of anticompetitive effects in any relevant market. As such, Microsoft's motion to dismiss the lawsuit was pushed back earlier this week.

The lawsuit was originally filed by ten people who stated that the planned $69 billion deal would give the company “an unrivaled position” in the gaming industry. As such, the group of gamers wants to block the planned merger. The antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft was filed in San Francisco. It was led by a group claiming to have a long history of playing Actiblizz titles across different platforms.

Judge Corley was not amused by the plaintiff's complaint, asking the complaint holders why Microsoft holding Call of Duty games exclusive to its titles would result in fewer games being sold. She also asked about what in the console market or PC games market and Microsoft’s position in those markets would make it plausible that there is a probability Microsoft would take such steps.

This wasn't Corley's only issue with this lawsuit, either. Another aspect of the plaintiff's complaint that was scrutinized was the allegation that the merger between Activision Blizzard and Microsoft would lead to a lesser gaming industry that would be less creative and far more anti-consumer than before. Corley stated that the claim was insufficient, adding that the plaintiffs failed to explain why and how any of this would be true.

Still, a few things have been conceded in terms