Microsoft is on track to finalize its $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, with regulatory hurdles being addressed and a recent agreement reached with Sony. The tech giant has signed a binding agreement to continue the popular Call of Duty videogame franchise on Sony's PlayStation consoles after the acquisition is complete.
This agreement with Sony has alleviated most concerns surrounding the closure of the deal. As a result, Activision shares have risen by 4.5% to $94.10 in premarket trading, narrowing the gap towards the $95-a-share acquisition price. Meanwhile, Microsoft shares have also experienced a slight increase of 0.6%.
Sony has confirmed to The Wall Street Journal that the agreement to maintain Call of Duty on PlayStation will last for 10 years, aligning with similar agreements Microsoft has established with other companies such as Nintendo.
Microsoft President Brad Smith expressed his commitment to ensuring that Call of Duty remains available on multiple platforms and accessible to a wider range of consumers. Despite this positive development, there is still an obstacle to overcome for the acquisition to be finalized.
While the details of this submission have not been disclosed publicly, Bloomberg reported that Microsoft and Activision might consider relinquishing some control over their U.K. cloud-gaming business to address the CMA's concerns. This could potentially involve selling cloud-based market rights to another company.
Overall, Microsoft is making significant progress towards finalizing its acquisition of Activision Blizzard, securing important agreements and addressing regulatory challenges along the way.
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