New White House FTC Nominees Could Affect MS Activision Deal
While we await the results of the federal case for a preliminary injunction vs the Microsoft Activision deal, the White House may have intervened on the FTC to change the outcome of this process.
As shared by Florian Mueller, the Biden White House recently shared their nominations to several bipartisan boards and commissions. These boards and commissions are intended to have both Democratic and Republican members, some by law and others by tradition.
It is no coincidence that that includes two Republican nominees to join Lina Khan’s FTC. A few months ago, Christine Wilson, who was the sole Republican member of the board, resigned. Wilson cited Khan’s “defiance of legal precedent and her abuse of power to achieve desired outcomes.”
The White House press release names Andrew N. Ferguson and Melissa Holyoak as Biden’s nominees. Both have experience in antitrust law, and are, of course, fully qualified for these nominations.
Reuters reports that “if confirmed by the Senate, the two Republicans will not change the balance of power at the FTC.” However, this could lead to changes in how the FTC oversees and enforces their mandate.
Outside of the world of gaming, Lina Khan has already been a controversial figure in politics. A few months ago, she received a grilling from Republican lawmakers, in a hearing intended to determine whether the FTC was to receive higher budgets for their work.
As you may remember, we reported that the grilling got so detailed that Lina was even asked about the Microsoft – Activision deal. She was asked point blank by Tennessee representative Diana Lynn Harshbarger why she was protecting Sony in her actions on this deal.
Of course, the FTC’s attempt to get an injunction to block the Microsoft
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