Microsoft officially closed the deal to purchase Activision Blizzard today, mere hours after the UK Competition and Markets Authority allowed the deal to go through. However, the US Federal Trade Commission will still be pursuing this case against the deal, according to a new statement from the government agency.
The CMA allowed the $69 billion purchase of Activision Blizzard to go through, after previously blocking it in April. Microsoft stated it would give all current and future Activision Blizzard games to Ubisoft for cloud gaming outside of Europe for the next 15 years.
However, that change doesn"t seem to impress the FTC. In a statement sent to Deadline, a spokesperson said:
We remain focused on the federal appeal process despite Microsoft and Activision closing their deal in advance of a scheduled December appeals court hearing. Microsoft and Activision’s new agreement with Ubisoft presents a whole new facet to the merger that will affect American consumers, which the FTC will assess as part of its ongoing administrative proceeding. The FTC continues to believe this deal is a threat to competition.
Back in July, after a five-day hearing, US Federal Court Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley denied the FTC"s request for a preliminary injunction to block Microsoft"s deal from going through so that the FTC"s own in-house judge could review the acquisition. A few days later, the FTC failed again with the same request, this time in the US Federal Appeals Court.
As the FTC statement says, another Ninth Circuit appeals court hearing is scheduled for early December with this case. Depending on the ruling of the appeals court, the FTC could then hold its own in-house hearing on the deal a few weeks later. However, it feels at this late stage that the FTC has little chance of reversing Microsoft"s purchase of Activision Blizzard.