Microsoft Closes Activision Blizzard Acquisition Following UK Approval

Microsoft's longstanding bid to acquire Activision Blizzard King is finally culminating. The announcement comes after the U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) gave a final nod earlier this morning to acquire the gaming studio behind prominent titles, including "Call of Duty," "Guitar Hero," and "World of Warcraft," as well as mobile games such as "Candy Crush Saga."

Phil Spenser, CEO of Microsoft's Xbox Gaming division, announced the acquisition. "As one team, we'll learn, innovate, and continue to deliver on our promise to bring the joy and community of gaming to more people. We'll do this in a culture that strives to empower everyone to do their best work, where all people are welcome, and is centered on our ongoing commitment of Gaming for Everyone," Spenser wrote in a blog post.

Microsoft will now bring key titles under the Activision, Blizzard, and King distributorship to the Xbox Game Pass. However, 2023 titles, especially "Diablo 4" and "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3," will not be added to the Game Pass immediately, as Activision clarified earlier this week.

The deal, with a proposed value of approximately $69 billion (before adjustments based on stock value), is finally coming to fruition after it was first announced in January 2022. It immediately went under the microscope of many market watchdog agencies as it would have potentially allowed Microsoft to monopolize massively popular titles, especially "Call of Duty." Over the last several months, Microsoft has gone to great lengths to convince and obtain approval from regulators around the globe. Besides government agencies, Microsoft also faced resistance from competitors, especially Sony, claiming the acquisition would give the former ultimate authority over the "Call of Duty" franchise.

Microsoft swore to make Activision's titles, especially "Call of Duty," available on all competitive platforms — including Sony's PlayStation and Nintendo Switch — until 2030, revealed its sales figures for the first time in nearly a decade, and even conceded complete defeat in the metaphorical "console wars" to ensure the deal is approved in key markets worldwide. The UK CMA was the last major regulator preventing the deal, citing concerns about Microsoft's monopoly in the cloud gaming segment following its finalization. Addressing these concerns, Microsoft restructured the deal in August 2023 and offloaded the cloud streaming rights for Activision's games onto Ubisoft. 

While granting approval, the CMA notes the acquisition will be "subject to the condition that the sale of Activision's cloud streaming rights completes prior to completion of the Merger."