Microsoft and Activision Blizzard Extend Merger Deadline to October - News
by William D'Angelo , posted on 19 July 2023 / 3,848 Views
Microsoft and Activision Blizzard announced an extension of Microsoft's acquisition of the gaming publisher with a new deadline of October 18 to complete the transaction.
"Microsoft and Activision Blizzard have extended the merger agreement deadline to 10/18," said Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer. "We're optimistic about getting this done, and excited about bringing more games to more players everywhere."
Microsoft and Activision Blizzard have extended the merger agreement deadline to 10/18. We're optimistic about getting this done, and excited about bringing more games to more players everywhere.
— Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) July 19, 2023
Activision Blizzard’s CCO and EVP of corporate affairs Lulu Cheng Meservey added, "The recent decision in the U.S. and approvals in 40 countries all validate that the deal is good for competition, players, and the future of gaming. Given global regulatory approvals and the companies’ confidence that CMA now recognizes there are remedies available to meet their concerns in the UK, the Activision Blizzard and Microsoft boards of directors have authorized the companies not to terminate the deal until after October 18. We’re confident in our next steps and that our deal will quickly close."
Update on Activision Blizzard’s merger with Microsoft: agreement deadline extended
— Lulu Cheng Meservey (@lulumeservey) July 19, 2023
The recent decision in the U.S. and approvals in 40 countries all validate that the deal is good for competition, players, and the future of gaming.
Given global regulatory approvals and the…
Microsoft Vice Chair and president Brad Smith said, "Together with Activision, we are announcing the extension of our merger agreement to 10/18 to provide ample time to work through the final regulatory issues. We will honor all commitments agreed upon with the EC and other regulators and continue to work with the CMA on the issues raised in the UK. We are confident about our prospects for getting this deal across the finish line."
Together with @Activision, we are announcing the extension of our merger agreement to 10/18 to provide ample time to work through the final regulatory issues. We will honor all commitments agreed upon with the EC and other regulators and continue to work with the CMA on the… pic.twitter.com/QZklZC20ZG
— Brad Smith (@BradSmi) July 19, 2023
Microsoft and Activision Blizzard have also agreed to higher termination fees and new commercial arrangements for the acquisition. Microsoft has to pay a termination fee of $3.5 billion if either parts walks away from the deal on August 29, which increases to $4.5 billion on September 15.
Activision Blizzard has also agree to potentially "hold separate the Company or certain assets of the Company or to implement other lawful alternatives to consummate the Merger" to satisfy concerns from the UK regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).
The UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal has agreed to pause Microsoft's appeal of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) blocking the Activision Blizzard acquisition, with some requirements being needed to be satisfied by Thursday.
The UK regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and Microsoft both greed to pause litigation in order to work out a new agreement. The CMA also extended its deadline to make its final order on Microsoft's Activision Blizzard acquisition from July 18 to August 29.
It was reported last week Microsoft and Activision Blizzard are considering giving up some control over cloud-gaming in the UK to appease the CMA. It is reported Microsoft might be willing to sell its cloud gaming rights in the UK to a telecommunications, gaming or internet-based computing company. One person said a private equity company might be interested.
The acquisition has been approved in Turkey, South Africa, South Korea, China, the European Union, Ukraine, Japan, Chile, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, and Serbia. Microsoft also won its case against the FTC in the US, which was trying to block the deal.
Read an internal memo from Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer via The Verge below:
Team,
Microsoft and Activision Blizzard remain optimistic that we will get our acquisition over the finish line, so we have jointly agreed to extend the merger agreement to October 18, 2023. While we can technically close in the United States due to recent legal developments, this extension gives us additional time to resolve the remaining regulatory concerns in the UK.
I want to thank everyone for your time and energy in support of the regulatory process and on all the great work coming to fruition for Xbox this year. Players around the world will be delighted with the incredible lineup of games launching in the next few months, including Starfield and Forza Motorsport. It is also great to see the fantastic work the ABK teams are delivering for their players with the successful launch of Diablo IV and the ongoing performance of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, and we congratulate them on their accomplishments.
As we move even closer to the finish line, we are more excited than ever before about furthering our mission to bring more games to more players everywhere.
Phil
A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can contact the author on Twitter @TrunksWD.
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MS screwed up here. Could have easily won the CAT case, that would’ve seal the ABK deal a lot sooner.
The delusional idea that the lying corrupt CMA will be more forgiving in the future towards any Microsoft acquisition is utter nonsense. The CMA still hates MS, and now that Microsoft is even bigger, they will want to deny MS more acquisitions in the future.
ABK might have required the greater certainty of closing the deal via working with the CMA, than the potentially more of a wild card court fight in the UK, as part of the extension negotiations.
The CMA having taken a significant public relations "L" for how they have handled this, I think the CMA might actually be more kid gloves with the next one, TBH.
