The Verge: CMA shares earlier decision on Microsoft and Activision Blizzard deal

The British Competition and Markets Authority will reportedly make a provisional decision on the acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft in the week of September 25. The final decision will be announced on October 18, but will not differ much from that.

Those involved say so The Verge journalist Tom Warren. The CMA will not officially reveal whether the market watchdog will approve the takeover deal until October 18. It is not clear why the authority has made a decision earlier. Microsoft and Activision Blizzard previously had to move the acquisition deadline and, not coincidentally, that deadline also expires on October 18.

The CMA did not approve the takeover deal in April because the authority had concerns about Microsoft’s dominant position in the field of cloud gaming. Microsoft previously adjusted the deal slightly, but that was not enough for the market authority. Since then, Microsoft has tightened the proposal even further, including by selling streaming rights of Activision Blizzard games to Ubisoft. This appears to mean that all of the CMA’s counterarguments have been processed by Microsoft.