Microsoft Unhappy With Regulator Comments on Activision Blizzard Deal

gamerant.com:

UK regulator the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has criticized Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard, leading to further comments from the Xbox platform owner calling the the criticisms «misplaced.» Back in January, Xbox announced that it intended to purchase Call of Duty and World of Warcraft publisher Activision Blizzard. This acquisition is set to cost Microsoft over $70 billion and would cause a huge shift in the gaming market according to many which has led to some big investigations into the deal.

Back in February, the FTC announced that it was looking into Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard. More recently, in September, the CMA voiced its concerns on the deal, stating that the acquisition of a large publisher such as Activision Blizzard could lead to some huge shifts in the gaming sphere, especially in regard to the competition of the market. According to the CMA, Microsoft acquiring Activision Blizzard would not only lead to a «substantial lessening of competition,» but it could also lead to the «withholding or degrading» of Activision Blizzard content on non-Microsoft platforms.

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Now, Microsoft has responded to these comments by the CMA. Responding to the regulator's many concerns, Microsoft representatives stated that the CMA «adopts Sony's complaints without the appropriate level of critical review.» This essentially accuses the CMA of following the critiques Sony holds for the Activision Blizzard. Microsoft backs up its claims by providing arguments of how it isn't currently the market leader in gaming and that Sony can adapt to increased competition.

Microsoft referenced Sony's leading position in the