After a 20-month battle with regulators in the United States and the United Kingdom, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has closed its $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard Inc (NASDAQ:ATVI), bolstering its gaming offering with the addition of popular titles including Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, and Overwatch.
A revised deal, which would involve Ubisoft acquiring Activision’s cloud gaming rights instead of Xbox-owner Microsoft to ensure competition in cloud gaming, was approved by the United Kingdom Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) on Friday.
"The new deal will stop Microsoft from locking up competition in cloud gaming as this market takes off, preserving competitive prices and services for UK cloud gaming customers," the CMA said in a statement.
“Today, we officially welcome Activision Blizzard and their teams to Xbox,” Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Gaming, said in a statement on Friday.
“Together, we’ll create new worlds and stories, bring your favorite games to more places so more players can join in, and we’ll engage with and delight players in new, innovative ways in the places they love to play including mobile, cloud streaming and more.”
Today is a good day to play. We officially welcome Activision Blizzard King to Team Xbox. Together, we’ll create stories and experiences that bring players together, in a culture empowering everyone to do their best work and celebrate diverse perspectives. https://t.co/KBCESknYYh https://t.co/jTHOeH48Wx
— Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) October 13, 2023
Microsoft shares traded flat just before the market opened on Friday at about US$331. Activision Blizzard shares were also flat at about US$94.
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