Update:
The conference meeting has approved Microsoft’s request to pause the appeal process to allow the CMA and Microsoft to continue in their discussions.
Original Story…
When Microsoft initially dealt with the CMA, it was met with a big rejection on its move to acquire Activision Blizzard. This happened earlier in the year, and we’re left waiting for an appeal to be completed once again to get this deal in front of the CMA. Of course, since then, Microsoft has come out with a win against the FTC through the legal court system over the same deal. That prompted the CMA to request Microsoft pause its appeal process and again strike up discussions over this merger.
But it’s not as simple as just pausing the appeal as they had to wait for the Competition Appeal Tribunal to approve. Today we’re finding out from Tom Warren, The Verge senior editor on Twitter, that the Competition Appeal Tribunal has scheduled a Microsoft and CMA case management conference for July 17, 2023. This is to consider the application made by the parties to hold off on the proceedings while the two have further discussions. So now the focus has been turned to Monday to see if this goes through and if that might mean a quick decision will be made from the CMA.
There has been plenty of attention on the CMA since they struck the deal down. But we also recently reported that there might be some small changes Microsoft will undergo to ensure that this merger happens. Those changes remain to be unveiled, but that could come soon. Of course, with that said, we have heard the CMA extended its deadline to make a decision on this case. It went from being this month to having a deadline of August 29, 2023. Fortunately, this decision from the CMA will likely come well before the deadline approaches.
One of the big reasons the regulator initially shut down the merger acquisition from Microsoft was based on cloud gaming. Since then, Microsoft has struck multiple deals with cloud gaming providers, and it could mean that this is one area Microsoft might sacrifice within the UK to ensure they are not going to miss out on acquiring Activision Blizzard. At any rate, Monday should hopefully bring out some more details for fans that have been following this Microsoft bid since it was first brought out to the public.
