Preventing unforeseen events Microsoft will finalizeAcquisition of Activision Blizzard in a few hours, but it’s worth remembering the next (and probably the last) important dates The fact that this long and arduous operation has already been detected by the regulatory authorities, possible lawsuits etc.
After winning the FTC and even signing a deal with Sony to keep the Call of Duty series on PlayStation, Microsoft’s road is almost paved to complete the purchase.
In this sense, the most important date to be considered is July 18 (8:59 a.m. on July 19 in Italy), ie the deadline agreed with ABK to complete the maneuver. This means that, except for last-minute surprises, the completion of the purchase will be announced by this date, that is, by tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow at the latest.
The other appointment to follow is tomorrow, July 17, when the CAT will decide in private, when the CAT will decide on Microsoft’s request to suspend its appeal to overturn the CMA’s decision in the UK. It will not be very interesting in terms of its effects on acquisition, practically zero at this point, but here we will discover the first details about the agreed-upon solutions. Passing the maneuver in the UK, one of which may see Microsoft handing over the cloud gaming rights in the country to a third-party company. We’ll see.
Key dates of the Activision Blizzard acquisition
- 17 July 2023: New Zealand’s final decision on takeover
- 17 July 2023: English CAT conference to consider joint proposal of Microsoft and CMA to stop appeal litigation
- July 18, 2023, 11:59 pm PT (July 19, 8:59 p.m. Italian time): The end of the second extension and the deadline stipulated by the transfer agreement. In the unlikely event that Microsoft decides to opt out by this date, it will have to fine Activision Blizzard $3 billion. If not, he’ll have to renegotiate his deal with Bobby Kotick’s company.
- July 28, 2023: First CAT appeals hearing (unless CMA and Microsoft suspension request are approved)
- August 2, 2023: FTC internal court action begins on condition that it does not waive its antitrust action; this will most likely happen once Microsoft and Activision Blizzard complete the acquisition.
- 29 August 2023: Deadline for the final decision of the CMA, which is investigating Microsoft’s new proposal to pass the maneuver in the UK. End of August / September 2023: CAT decision on Microsoft’s appeal request (if suspension request is not approved)
- December 2023 – January 2024: FTC Administrative Judge decision, pending trial not dismissed
As we can see in the list above, the dates FTC processIt is expected to start on August 2nd. But after losing the injunction case and the court’s appeals, it’s highly likely that the US antitrust will stop completely from blocking Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard.