Last Update: June 13, 2023, 05:11 AM IST
Washington DC, United States of America (USA)
Microsoft is facing a tough time buying Activision. (Reuters)
Xbox owner Microsoft launched a bid for Activision Blizzard early last year, seeking to establish the world’s third largest gaming firm
The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) asked a federal court on Monday to block Microsoft from completing its $69 billion buyout of gaming giant Activision Blizzard, a court filing showed.
“A preliminary injunction is necessary to prevent interim damages” while the FTC determines whether “the proposed acquisition violates US antitrust law,” the regulator said in the filing.
Requesting a preliminary injunction in the Northern California District Court, the US government sought to prevent the companies from finalizing the deal before the July 18 deadline.
An FTC hearing has been set for August to debate the merits of the deal, but an appeal in a federal court would potentially see Microsoft subject to a restraining order blocking the deal before that process is run.
A California judge will need to agree to block the deal after hearing arguments by the FTC about why the purchase is illegal and why it should proceed from Microsoft.
“We welcome the opportunity to present our case in federal court,” said Microsoft President Brad Smith.
“We believe that expediting the legal process in the US will ultimately lead to more choice and competition in the market place,” he said.
Xbox-owner Microsoft launched a bid for Activision Blizzard early last year, seeking to establish the world’s third-largest gaming firm by revenue after China’s Tencent and Japan’s PlayStation maker Sony.
While the European Union has greenlighted the deal, Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) blocked it in April, arguing that it would harm competition in cloud gaming.
The FTC sued in December to block a transaction with Activision Blizzard, maker of the blockbuster “Call of Duty” title, over concerns it would stifle competition.
The regulator is headed by Leena Khan, an antitrust academic who advocated for breaking up the biggest tech firms before President Joe Biden nominated her for the job in 2021.
Khan has accused Facebook parent company Meta of stifling competition by buying startups, and the FTC is probing Amazon.
Meanwhile, the US Justice Department has filed a lawsuit arguing that Google violated antitrust in online search as well as advertising.
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – AFP,
