The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the American competition authority, decided to sue the merger between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard in early December, to prevent it. According to the information of Bloombergthis decision was taken immediately after a telephone exchange with competition officials of the European Commission.
The competition authorities run
What could the European representatives have said to the FTC to prompt the latter to take the case to court the same day? They would have explained that they will soon be in discussions with Microsoft about possible corrective measures. Such a declaration would imply that the European Union could validate, under certain conditions, the acquisition announced a year ago, for 69 billion dollars. This decision could weaken the American procedure, from which the haste of the FTC initiated the proceedings.
The acquisition requires the approval of more than a dozen competition authorities, but in reality only three accounts. Therefore, that of the European Commission, which will soon publish its criticisms of Microsoft as part of its investigation, that of the FTC and finally that of the Competition and Markets Authoriy (CMA), the British authority. A preliminary decision is expected to be made by the latter soon.
If the three authorities argue, the FTC wants to go faster than the EU and the CMA so as not to risk being challenged. The two European authorities will have to pronounce respectively on 11 and 26 April, in the ambit of a completely traditional procedure.
Microsoft wants to convince of its goodness with “CoD”
Microsoft has begun taking corrective action to get the green light from competition authorities. The giant has already promised to keep Activision’s flagship license available for at least 10 years, call of Duty, on the Sony PlayStation. If the Japanese company has already rejected this outstretched hand, “CoD” should be found on Nintendo and on computers via Valve’s platform, Steam.
Officially, from Microsoft, trust is essential. Bloomberg recalls that Brad Smith, the company’s president, had stated in the FTC filing in December, we remain committed to finding creative solutions with regulators that protect competition, consumers and technology workers. »
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