Microsoft, which sells Xbox devices, announced in January 2022 its acquisition of Activision Blizzard, which develops popular video games, including Call of Duty and Candy Crush. The project, which aims to create the third largest video game company in the world, faces problems related to competition laws.
The European Commission, charged with overseeing competition in the European Union, opened an investigation in November 2022, expressing fear that Microsoft might “block access to video games developed by Activision Blizzard” to users of consoles and computers, including the game “Cal or Duty”. It postponed the deadline for making its decision to May 22, after it was previously set on April 25.
Neither Microsoft nor the Commission wanted to give details of the commitments made Thursday.
During a recent hearing before the Commission, Microsoft tried to dispel fears of damage to competition from the project, which Sony, its biggest competitor, strongly opposes..
A Microsoft spokesperson said, “We’ve kept our promise to make Call of Duty available to more players and devices, by securing deals to make the game available on Nintendo’s console and cloud gaming services from (Nvidia), (Bosteroid) and (Obitus).“.
“We are now backing this pledge up with binding obligations before the European Commission, which will help ensure that this deal benefits the players in the future.”“.
Microsoft chief Brad Smith visited Brussels last month for talks with European officials, after which he said he was “more optimistic” about getting the EU’s approval. However, Smith denied any intention to meet demands that Microsoft sell hit games like Call of Duty“.
The massive merger is also causing concern in the United States and the United Kingdom. The US Competition Commission has launched (FTC) Legal action was taken in December to block the deal, and in February, the British regulator concluded in preliminary findings that a merger between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard “could lead to higher prices, curtailing choice and innovation for UK players.”“.
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