Microsoft’s (temporary) victory in the United States in connection with the acquisition of Activision Blizzard also caused a stir in the UK.
The UK regulator has stated it is open to new negotiations with Microsoft. Previously, regulators had resisted and blocked the takeover, but since the takeover was (for now) allowed to proceed in the United States, the matter also wanted to be reviewed in the UK.
In concrete terms, UK regulators now want to hear proposals from Microsoft addressing the aforementioned concerns. It’s likely that Microsoft will repeat what was said before, namely offering a guarantee that Call of Duty will be available on other platforms, including PlayStation, for a long time to come.
Whether UK regulators will now agree to the takeover remains to be seen, but now that it has suddenly adopted a constructive stance, regulators in particular have said they are looking into the formalities by which it can approve the takeover.
In the UK, regulators are already under more pressure from politicians, who worry that blocking a takeover will take a huge toll on their jobs.
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