Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley has denied the FTC’s request About the blocking the acquisition of Activision Blizzard from Microsoft until the outcome of the appeal, a move that the American antitrust commission has made in an attempt to buy time.
“The FTC requests this court to hold the merger in question pending resolution of the FTC appeal to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. This motion is DENIED,” reads the ruling issued by Judge Corley, the same one who decreed Microsoft’s victory in the lawsuit against the FTC.
As reported, the FTC appealed the judge’s decision but times are very tight and it is for this reason that the US regulatory body has attempted the path of a temporary block, which could grant the Ninth Circuit court the margin necessary to deliberate.
It’s not over yet
From Microsoft’s point of view, it would have been better if the judge had attached (and therefore reiterated) her reasons for the refusal, so as to give the document a different value, but the fact remains that the FTC’s has turned into a race against time due to the antitrust strategy itself.
It is now about twenty-four hours until term of the restraining order, after which the Redmond house will be able to finalize the acquisition and at that point there will clearly be no appeal that holds. However, the possibility remains that the court will be able to express itself before this happens: it will be a busy weekend.
#Microsoft #Activision #deny #FTC #request #block #acquisition