US software giant Microsoft has submitted a modified takeover plan for US video game publisher Activision Blizzard to the UK Competition Authority (CMA), which blocked the original version of the deal.
Microsoft plans, in particular, to make significant sales of online gaming rights to French company Ubisoft.
The CMA specifies “to have opened a new phase 1 investigation into a restructured Microsoft agreement to acquire Activision,” in a press release published on Tuesday.
“Access games in different ways”
In addition, the CMA “concretized its decision to block the merger” of origin, an operation valued at 69 billion dollars and that would give rise to the third player in the sector in terms of turnover, behind the Chinese Tencent and Sony.
“As part of the new agreement, Microsoft will not buy streaming rights (streaming, editor’s note) to all current Activision games” or “games that will be broadcast over the next 15 years (except in the European Economic Area )”. , adds the CMA.
The latter will thus have the right to sell licenses to Activision content to “any provider of dematerialized games.” “This will allow players to access Activision games in different ways,” said Sarah Cardell, CEO of CMA, who said the review of the new version “is not a green light.”
“Our goal has not changed, which is to say that any future decision on this new wording of the agreement must ensure that the growing online gaming market will continue to benefit from competition that promotes choice and innovation,” he argues.
The CMA had announced that it would give Microsoft until August 29 to review the file, before making a decision. Microsoft and Activision have been given until October 18 to conclude this soap opera that has been going on for several months.
Source: BFM TV
