Microsoft Deal to Buy Activision Blizzard Is Officially Blocked by UK's CMA

Microsoft's $68.7B deal to buy Activision Blizzard has been locked by the UK's CMA on competition concerns for the growing cloud market.

[italiangamer]

HOLY SHIT!

[SullysCigar]

Ruh roh... But I heard it was a dead cert? Oh well, Microsoft could just use that money to continue to support the xbox brand before it bleeds out entirely, so this might buy them a little time.

Now we know their hardware made 30% less revenue than this time last year, God knows they could do with some money in the coffers. This might also explain why Nintendo suddenly tried to distance themselves from this fiasco the other day.

*LaughingJimRyan.gif*

[DarXyde]

Honestly, I'm very surprised by this turn of events. I was very skeptical of the chances of success until recently and it seemed like a done deal.

Now, this. I hope the appeal fails and Kottick gets nailed to the damn wall.

I really do hope that Xbox gamers understand that if this deal fails with certainty (i.e., no remedies provided by Microsoft are adequate), they don't lose anything. It just means all of their games *might not* launch into game pass. ABK aren't skipping Xbox, don't worry. The real takeaway is that they won't skip PlayStation. If either of those things are deeply troubling to you, you're kind of awful. It pretty much translates into "I don't want ABK games on that other console" or "I don't want to pay for games". Possibly both.

[darthv72]

Well shit. They will appeal and make more concessions. MS is not letting this go.

[shinoff2183]

You know how many games and studios ms could make with 70 billion dollars. They've recently bought 5 decent studios, inxile, obsidian, etc and a big ass publishers with numerous ip s under them. That should've been plenty. Pump the fking games out now ms you have plenty.

Also see ya in September for starfield. Can't wait

Darth just seen your comment. I think your absolutely right.

[S2Killinit]

Im very happy with this decision. Its likely that the deal will still go through in a different and hopefully lesser shape but I hope they break this down as much as possible to prevent this sort of gobbling up of the industry. MS should pay dearly for pulling this crap. Still, I dont see this stopping MS, but a welcomed news nonetheless.

[Flawlessmic]

Wow thought this was a done deal tbh, as much as I thought the deal going through would've been bad gaming in the long run I was kinda looking forward to all those games coming to gp and not having to buy them.

I wonder if this will be enough to stop the deal though

[Alexious]

Reversing the CMA's ruling would be a miracle at this point. It almost never happens.

[crazyCoconuts]

Technically if MS pays a fair price to Activision to cover the lost direct sales, I have no doubt COD could still be put on GamePass. Should be about equal to the opportunity cost of them doing it if it were part of MS

[DarXyde]

Never say never.

I think some people are celebrating prematurely. Just to seal the deal, I would not discount Microsoft's willingness to accept any remedies provided by the CMA if it allows them to proceed even 80% as intended.

Hopefully, we can shut up about this (myself included). We clearly have no idea what we're talking about, so let's just take a wait and see approach. I think the Xbox gang was overly hopeful and everyone else just said there's no way... Then it was looking very likely and they took a victory lap. Now, we're starting to see the original skeptics being proven right, albeit for different-than-expected reasons.

We're clueless, mate. Just waiting to see now.

[DarXyde]

Crazycoconuts,

"Technically if MS pays a fair price to Activision to cover the lost direct sales, I have no doubt COD could still be put on GamePass. Should be about equal to the opportunity cost of them doing it if it were part of MS"

True, but I really doubt Microsoft is willing to put up that kind of money. I would also think that gives ABK perverse incentive to crank out more games, regardless of quality/reuse of assets. At that point, you're guaranteed revenue from Microsoft, so why go beyond minimal effort?

[Rynxie]

So, just because you want free games, you would let a clear monopoly go through? What a sad "I want everything free" generation we live in. Willing to screw others over for your own benefit, this also goes for politics.

[dcbronco]

Explain how Microsoft buying Activision hurts gaming?

[Flawlessmic]

@ rynxie

Read my post again, clearly said I was against it, if you check my previous comment history you will see that is also the case.

However as I mentioned I thought it was a done deal at this point so figured no point crying about it started to see the positives.

I buy plenty of games mate on my ps5 and switch probably a lot more than you, my series x however is my gamepass machine I bought it for that specific reason so don't lump me in with that group.

[neutralgamer1992]

CMA just blocked this deal from happening in my opinion. Unlike ftc which is so political and our broken judiciary CMA won’t lose during the appeal process

This is such a huge issue now because we all thought CMA were on board. I guess this story needed more plot twists

[shinoff2183]

Neutralgamer1992

I salute you for being one of the well i guess Neutralist people here. I say that as a Sony troll.

[dcbronco]

I don't believe this was an honest process. There's no way they can look at years of Sony having a larger marketshare and look at all of the exclusivity deals Sony paid for during that time while having that much of a lead and determine that anything is hurting Sony economically. Especially since Microsoft hasn't said CoD would be exclusive. If nothing else it would seem Sony is guilty of years of anticompetitive practices and should be punished. Which is what it sounds like congress is looking into. This might still come back to really bite Sony in the ass badly.

[outsider1624]

No shit man ! I did not expect that!

[Bathyj]

I might finally join Twitter today

[generic-user-name]

It's delicious already and the West Coast isn't even awake yet.

[execution17]

😅 they're getting called clowns by a few of the ms fanboys. Shame I'm blocked by some of them so I can't see all their meltdowns

[neutralgamer1992]

Bathyj

Haha good times

Honestly, don’t understand how some of these so-called gamers are behaving on social media. It’s like they have no personal life. They are on social media so often. I wonder when they actually play the games for the company they’re defending. And like I said earlier, unlike FTC, CMA cannot be defeated that easily in the judicial process. Even FTC will most likely block this so MS will have to appeal in both regions and will certainly lose one

[dumahim]

@neutralgamer1992

"Honestly, don’t understand how some of these so-called gamers are behaving on social media."

You can't? I'm sure there are already death threats flying around, as is the way for certain gamers when they don't get their way.

[FinalFantasyFanatic]

@neutralgamer1992,
Adults are just big kids, some of us more/less so than others, some of those people will probably be teenagers as well, or I theorize would want this deal moreso because they have less money.

[Abracadabra]

... and the soap opera will continue.

[FlavorLav01]

Who’d thunk it?….Sony gained a massive industry talent this year and former main studio of Xbox’s - Bungie for under the amount that Xbox and MS just lost on a failed attempt to buy gaming’s biggest IP and came up empty handed. You can’t write this stuff…. Phil’s gotta be on his way out, right?

[Rockstar]

one can hope...

[SullysCigar]

If this is indeed the end of this deal, it HAS to be the end of Phil. That's just how these things work. They will appeal the decision and who knows, maybe this time they'll cross the right palms with silver and keep their dream alive. If you were working for the CMA and the buck stopped with you, those Microsoft trillions would surely play on your mind somewhat... Let's just hope they remain true to their role and protect the industry rather than feathering their own nests going forwards.

[Gamingsince1981]

Meh I said the first day the news broke MS was trying to buy AKB not to get excited but they all said it was a done deal because it's just fine *insert just fine meme* , MS can't buy the world and its a good thing this failed, the only people that could be upset are the 2 companies involved because of all the money they are losing now and people that thought keeping previously multiplat games off other platforms was a good thing, the deal going through would only be bad.

[1Victor]

We all knew it was going to fail when Michael pacter predicted otherwise it doesn’t fail if he say it’s a game is pure genius and amazing expect a half done buggy 💩

[notachance]

Sony should do Playstation Showcase featuring in-depth gameplay preview for Starfield just for the lol

[sparky77]

Huge plot twist it was blocked even without the Playstation issues.

Sounds like they will appeal but at this rate they should just move on, since without this deal I don't see how Xbox can recover from it's sales decline.

[AmUnRa]

They can apeal but the decision of the CMA is almost always followed.

[tay8701]

Yep. Not to mention they will would be battling for about 3 yrs, only to take the L again. I don't like any of ABKs games, but I'm glad MS wasn't able to buy whomever they want without being checked. Been a VERY bad last couple of weeks for MS. Their entire gaming division looks like it's on shaky grounds.

[Father__Merrin]

Xbox sales decline is because of people like you always hailing "best deal in gaming" when it actually was hurting Xbox.

Gamepass should be changed to a different format with a revolving state of 100 games or so mainly indies and older AAA titles. Day one releases should be day one releases like they always was.bie massive que for the next Forza etc

[shinoff2183]

Gamepass might not be better but ms might be in a better state if they stop all the day one releases. It's hurting them and their game sales. It's clear as day that's what's happening.

[Rynxie]

That's more MS fault. They were willing to take a lost to try and take a big share of the market from Sony.

[TheCaptainKuchiki]

The whole Game pass strategy was built on the assumption that they would be able to purchase a few powerful publishers to make the service very appealing. Bethesda was first.
People say that it's ABK that approached MS but I don't believe it.
It was calculated. They wanted to purchase big publishers since the beginning. Now that they got blocked, I see them modifying this strategy.

[FinalFantasyFanatic]

@Rynxie,
That kind of tactic might have worked for them before, but they shot themselves in the foot this time. Not only that, but the amount of money they would need to consistent blow to keep feeding games into gamepass must be phenomenal.

[Gardenia]

I'm not sure but did the EU already approve of the deal? And does the UK decision have effect on other countries? Anyone knows?

[tbagmonster]

ms is going on with the deal regardless so not sure why everyone here is celebrating

[mkis007]

Well if ms wants to pull all of its assets out of uk then thats their only remedy until the appeal works.

[Sunny_D]

@tbag

What are you talking about? Are you referring to MS going forward with the deal despite the FTC from yesterday? Well today that has changed because what everyone once thought was a sure approval from the CMA is no longer the case. MS is definitely NOT going forward with the deal.

[UltimateRacer]

The EU haven’t made a final decision and we’re awaiting the CMAs findings/outcome. The UKs decision can have an effect on other country’s that haven’t already passed the deal like US/EU as the UKs findings may or may not also affect the EU/US market. Now I could be totally wrong so take what I’ve said with a pinch of salt or if you’re sceptical, a bag of salt.

[DiRtY]

MS already said they will keep going for it. It might take a little longer though.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media...

[TGGJustin]

They can try but that answer was pretty clear. Let them waste more time just to get told no again though.

[theindiearmy]

At the end of the day, MS could probably just pull out of the UK market and the deal would still be worth it to them from a business standpoint. Then it's the CMA that looks to be the anti-consumerist by forcing a major player out of the market. Not saying I want that, but damn that would be a power move and kind of funny. Microsoft just goes, "Welp...see ya later then."

[MrDead]

I hope they fail and the Activision deal collapses because if so this is a massive win for gaming and gamers, actual consumer protections and anti-competitive practices being used for once!!! I never thought I'd see the day.

[jznrpg]

@ theindiearmy After the US the UK is their biggest market. They can’t just pull out of UK so easily

[Extermin8or3_]

@theindiearmy you think MS is going to withdraw all operations from the UK market.... apart from anything the USA government would be beyond pissed given the UK is there closest partner in terms of defence etc. Senior people in intelligence circuits have made remarks before that the USA is the bank and the uk is the brains- the uk is known to be a world leader in surveillance and intelligence gathering and you can bet there's a symbiotic relationship in those industries with MS and other tech companies. That's just one small sector, not to mention the money MS would lose. They bought 2-% of london stock exchange for a reason. No Microsoft isn't going to do any such thing.

[staticall]

@theindiearmy
I'm sorry, what? Microsoft should pull out of UK market because of Xbox? Are you crazy? You know how many billions they'll lose and how many breach of contract lawsuits they'll face? And keep in mind all the software sales, licenses, hardware, subscription money, offices they rent, staff, datacenters and so on. It would be much cheaper for Microsoft to shut down the Xbox branch altogether than to pull out of such a big market. They're a huge company, you don't go «Screw you guys, i'm going home» because some deal didn't go your way, it's bad for business.

Not to mention, even if Microsoft pulls out of UK, CMA will still keep blocking the deal. Because Activision-Blizzard will not pull out of UK. Or else they'll lose a lot of money and their price will drop significantly.

This will be a lose-lose situation. This will be a very shortsighted, irrational, stupid act, not a power move.

[zeuanimals]

Playground Games and Rare are both based in the UK too. What? Are they gonna have to move all of them to the states? The devs can't even play their own game in their home country? Lmao

[theindiearmy]

LOL at anyone thinking I meant all of Microsoft should pull out. Obviously I meant just leave the UK gaming market. Didn't think that had to be clarified, as that's the entire context of this debacle.

[badz149]

@theindiearmy

pull out from the 2nd biggest xbox market because of this? hahahahaha and then what??

ah...you xbox fanatics are HILLARIOUS!

[DiRtY]

I think I was right and you were wrong.

[Thundercat77]

They can try but the decision was already made and also, there is the FTC and the Europeans.

Huge plot twist.

[Bathyj]

It might take a little never at this rate.

[DiRtY]

Might happen in 3 weeks at this rate.

[ravens52]

Let it go. Hope Starfield is a hit and then get into grind mode and *come a little closer*... MAKE GAMES!! Take a chance and make an original IP, You guys need a new Xbox mascot. Seems master cheif isn't the face anymore, COD won't be either.

[neutralgamer1992]

MS can appeal but CMA will likely win. It’s hard to defeat CMA

[Hofstaderman]

As I’ve always said the CMA don’t play around.

[SICKINDIVIDUAL]

Bobby kotick: 'i'm in danger '.....🤣🤣
...lmao he's getting canned.

[Extermin8or3_]

MS there trying to make out the CMA simply don't understand the market the level of patronising crap they've come out with during this is ridiculous. The CMA assembles a panel of experts for each major case they investigate aswell as relies on loads of 2nd and 3rd party data and interviews with loads of people and are meticulous in their reports. If anything the one the unorthodox u-turn on gaming in MS's favour actually weakens MS's case.

[AmUnRa]

Keep dreaming.

[DiRtY]

I think I woke up and was right.

[IamFrasierCrane]

If only they put this much effort into making games smh

[Sonic1881]

@Dirty
Sure it will 😁

Microsoft Activision Blizzard appeal: what happens next?

- CMA has won vast majority of appeals
- Very high bar for appeal to be successful
- Will almost certainly push into 2024
- If appeal succeeds it goes BACK to CMA for final word LoL

https://youtu.be/Lbx1rCNp3m...

[DiRtY]

Yes, it will.

[Profchaos]

They wouldn't back away publicly that would be a bad look it's still a emotional business something you've worked for has been blocked and you've wasted years you're going to be angry and pushing for a way forward.

I don't expect them to give up but it's fairly concrete once the CMA makes a decision

[jonny897]

Microsoft is very desperate, they will not leave this deal.

[SullysCigar]

The trouble is, it will cost much time and money to fight. As it stands right now, they're already billions of dollars in the hole with ABK.

At some point, Microsoft may well run out of patience and tell the xbox division that if they want to buy publishers/developers/IPs then they'd better make some effing money and stand on their own two feet.

[outsider1624]

Ok so this deal is off. What happens to that 70billion dollars? They get it back or something?

[SullysCigar]

^ Well the money isn't spent, so presumably nothing changes. Xbox don't hold that money, Microsoft does. It might be repurposed for something unrelated to xbox.

If xbox want to use an amount of money that they haven't generated, they'll have to beg for it again, which will take time to process and build the proposal, so it's not happening any time soon. The only other way is to earn the money you spend on acquisitions, and as we've seen from the financial reports, they're hardly profitable and their hardware revenue is plummeting almost as quickly as PlayStations is rising.

[crazyCoconuts]

They have a deadline in the contract, if they don't finalize it by the deadline (June-ish?) MS pays Activision like 2B even if it gets rejected by regulators

[Hofstaderman]

I’m waiting for this day and it may be sooner than expected based on current insider disclosures.

[UltimateRacer]

You know what’s going to happen with Xbox, they’ll put all there time and effort into this ABK nonsense even if that means this outcome running into 2024, Xbox console sales will continue to plummet except for a small boost from Starfield regardless of wether or not it launches as a buggy mess and then you’ll have little to no output from MS studios and anything that does release or shadow drop will be of poor quality/will sell poorly because of gamepass. Ultimately MS are in this position of desperation because they think they can money hat the industry, continue to make bad decisions and ultimately have incompetent leaders. What I can see happening in the not so distant future is MS becoming a 3rd party publisher and putting their games everywhere.

[SICKINDIVIDUAL]

Well at this point it's already cost them upwards of $3 billion if the deal doesn't happen by June....I don't care how rich a company is nobody throws away billions of dollars without someone eventually stepping in.

Great news for gamers and this makes sense with regards to high level management at MS not being happy with profits....Phil thought he had it all figured out LMAO....go make games clown.

[Hofstaderman]

For all we know the higher ups at MS may have gotten wind of this before the news officially broke hence their reported stance on XBOX division.

[RauLeCreuset]

The thought of Xbox spending billions to tell the world Playstation has the better exclusives is hilarious.

[darksky]

If the regulations deem it to be monopolistic then they will block it and I hope they do. Buying out some of the biggest the ip's in the gaming market is simply a bad move from a consumer point of view since it blocks out a huge percentage of gamers.

[tbagmonster]

they are still going on with the deal and have other ways to buy up seperate chunks and avoid all this

[-Mika-]

The CMA’s concerns are that Cloud gaming has tripled but MS accounts for 60-70% of Cloud gaming. Did they not think the reason for the growth in Cloud gaming was because of MS Investments in the last few years? Third party AAA games, touch controls on mobile and it being a subscription instead of buy2play has made Xbox the #1 cloud service in the UK. Why are they being punished for this? This is a really bad move from the CMA!

[SullysCigar]

What, by monopolising another market?

[-Mika-]

What monopoly? This deal wouldn’t give MS domination in the cloud market, because literally any cloud provider that wanted it could get access to MS games. What’s more likely to happen without this merger is that smaller companies are priced out of content, and MS signs exclusivity deals to squeeze anyone else out from competing. This is only going to hurt the cloud market.

[Extermin8or3_]

Post merger MS wouldn't have to provide anything but COD to other companies ABK have many other IP's and the deals were all about COD. Also the issue isn't the current players it's more the obstacle it would prevent to new entrants. Cloud infrastructure is really costly to even start and get off the ground. If some of the most popular IP's are able to be witheld from your service it's such an uphill battle as to be impossible to enter the gaming market.

[porkChop]

I don't think it's fair to say they've "monopolized" cloud when both Google and Amazon failed in that market. MS is clearly the most successful in cloud gaming but it's not their fault that other companies made terrible decisions. For example, I've never even seen an ad anywhere for Luna. Amazon basically sent that service out to die. Stadia had the advertising but it had no value proposition and required a sizable investment just to try out the service. How is MS responsible for that?

[shinoff2183]

Mika

I'm sure they know more then you about the subject. They had to of had their reasons. Hell here's a new one for you guys. Maybe Sony paid then and the cloud reason is just bs lol. Enjoy

[KyRo]

New and emerging market? Like we haven't heard streaming being the future for decades. Just like mobile was supposed to be the end for consoles. No one is pissed at this decision except fanboys.

[Thundercat77]

Just because you don't understand it, doesn't mean you can call it a bad move.

[-Mika-]

The only good news out of this whole ordeal is that Phil might be fired for this acquisition failing. That usually how it goes at these big companies. We need new leadership at this point and Phil doesn't know what he doing.

[dumahim]

Yeah, I wonder if they'd go that route. Sounds like they're paying up $3B just for the deal not going through. Who knows what other costs are involved in this whole thing. That's a tough bill to soak up and no payoff in the end.

[derek]

@Mika, they are making this decision to protect what they see as a market in its infancy to allow other to come into it should they chose.

[-Mika-]

What others? Cloud gaming is an expensive industry to jump into. MS offered these people access to COD and their first party titles for 10 years, free of charge! They are not getting a better deal than that. Do you honestly think these small cloud companies can afford to put COD on their services?

[rippermcrip]

Yes, Microsoft accounting for 2/3 is exactly the issue. The deal would make them even more powerful in that area, preventing competition.

[RedDevils]

What a stupid comment.

[ChasterMies]

From my perspective, Microsoft is no.1 in cloud gaming because cloud gaming sucks and xCloud is included with Game Pass ultimate, and Game Pass subscribers have to pay for Game Pass ultimate if they want to play games on-line. Imagine if Microsoft adds an even more expensive tier to play CoD. Imagine if World of Warcraft is cloud only. That’s what CMA is worried about.

[CptDville]

You are so naive, it’s kinda cute!

[Chevalier]

"I don't think it's fair to say they've "monopolized" cloud"

It's also not fair to cry crocodile tears about Playstation and Nintendo having better games that they should be allowed to buy a whole publisher. It's NOT Playstation or Nintendos fault they have better games now is it?

Maybe Xbox can take the $70 billion and I don't know MAKE new IPs?! Like how Playstation and Nintendo have done.

[StarkR3ality]

Well I didn't see that coming...

[Eonjay]

Gotta stop listening to the YouTube lawyers and gotta stop letting fanboys define the arguments.

[MrDead]

I'm shocked, this is one of the few times I can remember anyone standing against Microsofts anti-competitive activities... could this be a win for gamers against the cancer that is Microsoft?!?

[shinoff2183]

The u.s. has done it in the past. I'm not sure of other countries

[FGHFGHFGH]

Microsoft has been fined over a billion dollars due to anti competitve practices.

https://violationtracker.go...

[Moegooner]

Game Pass has bitten MS in the butt. How ironic lol.

[jznrpg]

In more ways than this. It’s killed off their console potential .
If they didn’t go full PC day one they could potentially sell more boxes this gen .

It has killed most of their software sales they would have had before but now they totally rely on gamepass.

They must make gamepass work or they are going to fail and that’s a big bet with the way their studios have been handled.

20 years to grow their culture and studios but instead they just relied mainly on 3rd party exclusives.
They had a chance to keep me as a customer with 360 but after Kinect and Xbox One reveal I saw what their vision of gaming was and I wanted nothing to do with it.
Now they add renting subscription as their focus on games to that mix to make it much worse .

They want to be a cloud streaming service long term the writing is on the wall. It may not be for 10+ years but that’s where they want to head.

[Hofstaderman]

And on both cheeks.

[Aloymetal]

Hey, it's not over yet, stay tuned because the inevitable is about to happen. Those Phil interviews explaining and spinning are a few hrs away.

[Aloymetal]

Exactly!. Gamepass is the trojan horse not so much for the gaming industry as MS thought but for MS itself.

[KwietStorm_BLM]

YIKES.gif

[TGGJustin]

Good and lol to internet nobodies who said this was a done deal. Maybe they should take their money and use it on the 20+ studios they own already and put out some actual good quality games.

[ravens52]

Exactly! 68 billion $ for new IPs. Make some amazing games like Sony does and you can be right back in the race in no time.

[SullysCigar]

The thing is, that money didn't belong in the xbox division in the first place, it was from Microsoft as a parent company and it was signed off for a specific purpose.

It doesn't just stay in the xbox purse until they feel like spending it, they're back to square one unless they beg more funds from Microsoft's finance guys. They'd need to draw up new proposals, debate and fine-tune them before they could make a different acquisition or utilise money >they haven't earned< for games production.

[ravens52]

Got it. Damn, that's not good.

[EvertonFC]

Exactly, people in the MS meetings clearly dont know anything about the industry so probably never think to state the obvious like actually make some AAA with there own money and studios.

[Pyrofire95]

The problem just has to be management at this point. They have the money, there has a to be a reason they would let Halo slip, and Scalebound dissolve. Nearly every other release has had controversy around launch too.

[BigBosss]

Damn. I mean damn.

[generic-user-name]

Justice is served.

[InsaneChronos]

Pachter strikes again!
https://n4g.com/news/253542...

[Eonjay]

Flawless record. The hate a vitriol he flung at Sony too lol.

[SICKINDIVIDUAL]

He needs to be cancelled asap.

[Outside_ofthe_Box]

Reading the comments on there are funny.

[BrainSyphoned]

Feel like I should change my icon to Orchard for the feels.

[Ristul]

lol

[badz149]

LOL I was about to say THAT! I commented there too and said the deal won't go through because Patchter has said it will.

what a national treasure of an analyst! MS should have set aside a little from that $69bil to shut Patchter up! welp...too late for THAT now!

[Rainbowcookie]

"Headshot"

[MIDGETonSTILTS17]

What?

Really?

But I’ve been suppressing my hopes… dare I cease? 💀 🎭

[jznrpg]

Done deal ? That all I heard . It looked possible but never count your chickens.

Make your own IP. Have quality control and build a culture of gaming.
That’s what we have been saying for 20 years but they want to buy the industry and make it their own instead. That’s why they bleed talent and declining hardware sales and have stagnant growth.

[repsahj]

All that thousands of eggs they counted didn't hatch. XD Seriously I thought this deal will get through. I already accepting that ^_^

[EvertonFC]

They forgot they ONLY had 1 egg

[Knushwood Butt]

Oof

[XiNatsuDragnel]

Whelp surprised tbh

[Thundercat77]

A huge plot twist. Everyone thought the deal was going to be approved. Microsoft even decided to go ahead even bypasssing the FTC ( which was as very ugly move).

At the end, justice was served. Now Microsoft has to actually work for their Xbox brand instead of trying to pay to win. They brought this to themselves.

[gleepot]

But this... isn't the end? At all?

[Bathyj]

Well you don't load more people and all your valuables onto a sinking ship.

[derek]

Another surprising turn, looks like they removed the console issue as that was their weakest argument should the decision be appealed. I'm glad, hopefully Microsoft will get serious about actually working to provide a better product for their customers instead of trying to buy their way to prominence. Hopefully this debacle leads to Kotick getting fired by the board abk.

[Thundercat77]

The CMA said they saw no danger in the console market for this deal. This is why everyone though the deal was going to be approved but no one saw it coming that the deal was going to be blocked because of the cloud gaming part which ,like the CMA says, Microsoft has a huge advantage already and would cause an unfair advantage.

"As a reminder, Microsoft will owe Activision Blizzard $3 billion if the deal is not completed."

😯 Fatality.

[MIDGETonSTILTS17]

Awesome.

[sinspirit]

In my opinion. I feel the console side should have been an easy argument. Perhaps once they got to the cloud topic it was pushed more heavily by those that could see that.. since the cloud topic is easier to scare people about

[RauLeCreuset]

I absolutely saw it coming, but I know how to not run my mouth, unlike some of the half-baked prognosticators who spoke with a false sense of authority like they knew what they were talking about when they were really just waving the pom-poms for their favorite team. This shouldn't be a surprise to anyone who paid attention. The CMA issued their preliminary findings, at which time they gave their reasons for why they were likely to oppose the deal. The effect on the console market was only one of the stated reasons. MS still had to overcome the others.

[Vengeance1138]

Microsoft just can't stop taking L's lately.

[Bathyj]

That's because they're concerned with everything except how good their games are.

[badz149]

the next Windows or Xbox might be named Windows L or Xbox L at this rate LOL

[S2Killinit]

Oh SNAP 🫰

[SoulWarrior]

This is a good day for gaming and the industry as a whole, MS have many studios and IPs particularly from the bethesda purchase and have the coffers to compete easily without buying a titantic sized publisher. Although I feel no sympathy for those crying on twitter on reddit about not getting their 'free' call of duty out of this.

[aws04]

Imagine the look on Phil's face...

[Ristul]

I bet that smug smile faded away pretty quickly.

[Hofstaderman]

Imagine the look on Koticks face. Man must be having an aneurism.

[SICKINDIVIDUAL]

Goodbye golden parachute lmaoooo.

[badz149]

MS will still have to pay them up to $3bil if the deal is off based on the comments here. maybe not enough for a golden parachute, but a small yacht for a little cooldown vacation is still pretty much within range

[Aloymetal]

Forget Phil, imagine Jim's face lol

[rippermcrip]

They weren't about to fall for Microsoft's lies again that they won't make anything exclusive

[Bathyj]

It's a good day for gaming and commonsense.

Xbox gamers, instead of hoping and praying Microsoft buys everyone, hope and pray one of your games comes out great.

[SICKINDIVIDUAL]

You'd think ms would be concerned with their image after this fiasco...damn do they have 💩 on their face lmaoooo.

Not a good look.

[shadowT]

Xbox should focus on games again

[Bathyj]

Been saying that since Kinect was announced.

[TheTony316]

Nah, we need more Usher!

[Ristul]

Thats what I don't get, they have so many studios, put the money into those studios and build new great games.

[MIDGETonSTILTS17]

They did…. That cost them $500 million just for Halo Infinite, which they gave away for free to save face after countless delays.

[mkis007]

So much for all the people since it was announced who claimed it would go through easily.

[blackblades]

Ochard was one of the main ones but he disappeared months ago unless he on another account

[Solitariussaint]

Ooooouuuuueeeeeiiiiii!!!! Lollololol

[Soulsborne]

And no one believed me when i said it wouldnt go through. Yes M$ will appeal, which will be a huge waste of money, time and resources. True gamers will be happy about this news.

[DiRtY]

Still think that way?

[Nacho_Z]

Ouch. That's going to be a nasty surprise for a lot of people.

[Vithar]

oh boi LOL

[Abnor_Mal]

Sony should buy Square or Capcom, or both.

[Aloymetal]

Imagine the meltdown lol.

[Abnor_Mal]

Actually Sony should buy Capcom like MS bought Bethesda, and leave Square multiplatform since their games sell best on PlayStation but can get the scraps from Xbox.

Each company gets one major publisher and that be the end of publisher purchasing.

[TheKingKratos]

God i hope so ... I was against that in the first place but seeing how rabid xbox fanboys got about AcK deal ... Then they wouldn't mind when Sony do the same

I hope Sony buys From Software and Capcom and/or Square Enix

[Abnor_Mal]

In truth I’m sure Xbox fans would mind too much if Sony did acquire Square, but they would lose their sh!t if Sony got Capcom.

As far as getting From Software it would like @Aloymetal said a meltdown on the scale of Chernobyl. No one would be able to come to N4G for years. It would be a ghost town with only a few mutants lurking about in the shadows waiting to pounce on unsuspecting commenters and rend them to the bone should they be brave or foolish enough to mention the yesteryears.

[shinoff2183]

Sony did buy a percentage in from software but a small amount.

[Abnor_Mal]

@shinoff2183 Yea if I’m not mistaken Sony has about a 16% stake in From Software.

If I remember correctly that’s about the same amount they had in Square some years ago before they decided to sell off.

[coolbeans]

-"I was against that in the first place but seeing how rabid xbox fanboys got about AcK deal"

Newsflash: if seeing how other people react to big publisher acquisitions is enough to change your mind, you likely didn't have a principled stance against these kinds of acquisitions to begin with. This is just a self-report.

[TheKingKratos]

@Coolbeans

No i am still against it just like before i only want to see their reaction to it and how they will be fine if that happens.

[coolbeans]

-"I hope Sony buys From Software and Capcom and/or Square Enix"

If you're so against that tactic, why did you say this in your first comment?

[stonecold3]

According to the Xbox fans Sony are broke and can’t afford to buy them or they will end up like sega which isn’t true hope Sony buy square enix now that ms took bethseda away from PlayStation

[343_Guilty_Spark]

Square is barely multi platform

[shinoff2183]

343

Bs

Square has about the same amount on ps that come out on switch. Just cause the Xbox gets left out in alot , idk I'd suggest support their titles

[Destiny1080]

xbox gamers have become accustomed to these massive fails over the years, but three in one month

30% sales drop, 50% frame rate drop, and know this 100% failure

[SullysCigar]

Sad times for those guys. They need some good news - maybe Phil will leave?

[MrSec84]

That would be the best news!
Phil Spencer is the worst thing to happen to the XBox brand, a new head executive or whatever he's called now.
There's far too little action and productivity coming from the studios within the brand and with Gamepass they've diminished the value of their content, because people expect to pay nothing or next to nothign for XBox games.

[TheKingKratos]

Good they deserve it ... They acted very smug about it and were boosting and acting like MS own the world and made fun of Sony and how is Sony the bad guy for trying to stop this

But they are no where to be found now

[repsahj]

that $1B revenue is not enough to pay the $3B they owe to activision. XD

[badz149]

that's pocket change for papa Satya as MS is in the Trillion elite group

[dumahim]

"Following hints from Activision Blizzard's pre-market stock being down"

So people were taking action on their shares before this new became public? Isn't that insider trading?

[SullysCigar]

Absolutely and I hope the dirty buggers are investigated accordingly. I think MS knew this was coming, as they've let a lot of bad news hit in one go, probably timing it to match the CMA negative outcome. That means, in all likelihood, MS exec and associated parties would have dumped their stock. Prosecutions inbound?

[repsahj]

Wow I thought money can buy everything. Nice move CMA! I'm against the acquisition but I really really thought there's 90% chance that this deal will go through, I guess sometimes that 10% chance can happen.

[babadivad]

Honestly didn’t see this one coming. Shit just got interesting.

[victorMaje]

Wow, people saw light, good.
Maybe now they’ll focus on what gets companies ahead in the gaming industry. Quality games.
Gonna be funny watching some meltdowns though.

[Ryuk_2007]

Blocked because of the power of the cloud. Posting in a legendary thread-part 2 lol

[italiangamer]

https://www.ft.com/content/...

"One shareholder in Activision told the Financial Times that Microsoft would “surely use every avenue to fight, but at the end of the day, this deal is dead already. It’s a zombie-deal now.”

The shareholders already know that the appeal won't go anywhere, oh well at least they get those $3 billions from Ms for the failed acquisition.

[thesoftware730]

Your link wants me to pay $1 to keep reading.

[italiangamer]

The first time I opened the link I could read it just fine but now seems the trial period has ended and wants me to pay too 😂. However trust me that the quote comes from the article itself.

[badz149]

that used to be the admission fee for Gamepass

[__SteakDeck__]

@italiangamer What if the FTC and the EU approve the deal? Does MS really need the CMA for this to go through?

[Hofstaderman]

UK is their second largest market. Let that sink in.

[italiangamer]

https://www.theguardian.com...

Something similar happened with the proposed acquisition of Arm by Nvidia, the FTC was the first to block the deal and consequently the other regulators blocked it too. Nvidia had to pay Softbank $1.25 billion for the failed acquisition, just like Ms will do but for $3 billions.

However with Activision I get to believe that even if the USA and the EU approved the deal, this still would not change the ending because you need every major regulator to approve it. Honestly after the UK I think the EU will block it too, the verdict will be out on the 22nd of May if I'm not mistaken and the FTC will give the final verdict much later in the year in August.

[DiRtY]

Great source you quoted here!

[Ristul]

Sweet, the right call to be honest, monopoly is bad for everyone in the end.

[thesoftware730]

My biggest problem with this is that MS will appeal, and we will have 100 articles a week about it for another year.

I don't see MS stopping.

[Flawlessmic]

Yep the circus continues!!

[Petebloodyonion]

Interesting! I guess it’s mean we will still have Ms/Activiosn articles headlining N4G for the coming years.

[isarai]

Damn, welp! Looks like it's time to actually build great studios and games from what you have rather than trying to buy your way into greatness.

[Gamerscore2077]

Damn, MS is having a terrible week so far.

[TheKingKratos]

Lol 😂😂😂

[TheTony316]

I mean, that's fine, right?
Microsoft has more than enough studios and money to create their own COD competitor... ;)

[Hofstaderman]

Brilliant one 😂

[MrSec84]

This is true, but tbh they may as well create more new IPs, get games out and build new studios to grow the industry, instead of taking from it and denying content from going to PlayStation or whoever may be competition for XBox in the future.

ZeniMax is a prime example of how not to handle this situation and the UK government can see that, as much as I hate them!

[MrSec84]

As it should be, no company should be able to buy any of these publishers and control them.
The ZeniMax deal should have been blocked as well.

Microsoft should just take that money, use it to build new studios of their own and IPs from the ground up.
Add to the industry, don't just consume and stop content going to platforms it has thrived on for generations.

[MisterZay0000]

Alright Sony, now announce the PlayStation Showcase already.

[badz149]

featuring CoD just for the lolz

[MrSec84]

Or a CoD competitor that's fresh.

[PadrePio]

As an xbox console owner. I'm quite happy with this deal falling through. Think it's the best outcome for Xbox and gaming tbh.

[TheKingKratos]

"As a reminder, Microsoft will owe Activision Blizzard $3 billion if the deal is not completed."

Lol again 😂😂😂
Time to Pay up, Micro$oft

[Hereandthere]

Couldn't happen to a better company! Well deserved.

[MIDGETonSTILTS17]

THE reason it’s blocked is because Game Pass is TOO good?

Hilarious.

[gleepot]

I'm fine either way if this goes through or not, but I think you are all really jumping the gun here. There's still a lot more to go on the deal.

[rlow1]

In other words, they want the British to be competitive in the cloud market. So this had nothing to do with games and more to do with politics.

[shinoff2183]

Even if that's the case. Their job I to look out for the u.k. say what you wan

[rlow1]

Sure, but the problem with that is now every tech company is going to think twice before investing in the UK. US allows investment all the time from UK, China, Korea and just about anyone. Their arguments for blocking the deal was all about cloud computing. Nothing else, so it’s their way of protecting their industry. But they are aspiring for more than just fair trade. They said it themselves, they want to become the next Silicon Valley. First Hollywood, now the tech industry. So, if you’re a tech company and they’re trying to stack the deck in their favor. Would you invest?

[badz149]

just like the FTC and US Senators takes on the deal, nothing to do with Sony's dominance, games or consumer's interest, just politics, right?

[rlow1]

You’re looking at one company. Sony has way more access to the US than western companies do in Sony’s country of Japan. Plus, Sony invited the scrutiny by really going after this.

But as an industry it does send a negative vibe that the UK isn’t as open to acquisitions. Which translates to less investment. Remember, when the CMA is talking about protecting the cloud industry, they are talking about the UK.

Yes in the end, it’s all politics

[MrSec84]

It's not blocking investment, tech companies will definitely not see it that way.
They can set-up Server Farms to house cloud processing facilities, Microsoft has already done that without oposition from the government.

What about this actually stops Microsoft poaching the talent from Activision to create new Studios or make games in the same style as CoD or other Activision-Blizzard owned IPs, basing them in the UK?

[SPEAKxTHExTRUTH]

MS needs to just take that money and create better AAA games. Buy talent give them freedom and a budget and release AAAgames in a decent time frame.

[Aloymetal]

They had plenty of time to do that and they didn't, how much time do they need after 20+yrs in the gaming market??

[SPEAKxTHExTRUTH]

It’s not a sprint it’s a marathon. Why you people think MS (or any dev) can just spit out AAA games from scratch is beyond me. Yes MS is lagging but that doesn’t mean they can’t fix the issue ir should they just not try and let Sony be the only console maker in town?

[Aloymetal]

@SPEAKx
''It’s not a sprint it’s a marathon.''
So 20+yrs in the market is not a ''marathon'' I guess they need a 50 yr marathon...
''Why you people think MS (or any dev) can just spit out AAA games from scratch is beyond me.''
How come a tiny Corp like Sony can pump out AAA games like they've been doing faster than a trillion$ Corp?...
I'll wait for the spin/excuse...

[SPEAKxTHExTRUTH]

MS has made plenty good games during OG Xbox and 360 era so don’t act like it’s been this way their entire existence. Xbox 1 is where things feel apart.

[MrSec84]

The issue is their focus on taking from the industry last gen and now, along with little in the way of new IPs actually releasing .
When they were behind devs making Gears, Forza and other Microsoft owned new IPs, either created from within or by 2nd/3rd party partnews they were giving to the industry back in the 360 or on the OG XBox days, you even had games like Brute Force and a bunch of new content that made people excited for XBox.

That isn't what's happening now, because they're taking and not focusing on things that matter for a gaming brand, which is making exciting new games.

Sony and Nintendo do the opposite.
People like to use Final Fantasy as some example of Sony consuming, but it's not the majority of what Sony does, PS5 and PS4 had a bunch of new IPs actually release and Square also knows that PlayStation is where their audience plays most of their games.

[Flenter]

ha ha ha ha ......sorry 😉

[Father__Merrin]

Good job. There was a certain someone on every thread about the Activision deal I wonder where he is lol....

I predict Spencer to go and good riddance tbh

[darkrider]

That person disappeared after the news of the supply problems with the ps5! It wasn't true.... But just for him

[Hereandthere]

I guess its back to spamming the same 6 exclusives, hellblade, starfield, fable, avored, state of decay, perfect dark, meme they have been spamming the last 4 years.

[ocelot07]

Wow I'll be honest I was thought this was going though. The lawyers on here told us all so for the last 6 months. Hand infinite amount of links to prove that it would go through.

So Microsoft admitted gamepass hurts game sales for noting.

Would be kind of funny if Sony comes out now and announces they have bought out Square and Capcom lol.

[ironmonkey]

Well that puts an end to those ms trolls hoping for this ms deal. They can keep trying but Xbox is fading away fast. Is there a fourth place?.

[bleedsoe9mm]

Not going to stop the deal, just means UK gamers will be getting less for the same money

[BehindTheRows]

It HAS stopped the deal. Without an appellate win, it’s over.

[bleedsoe9mm]

Its an appeal to the same people so its not a ruling its a negotiation, so it will depend on what the CMA wants to make it happen and if MS is willing to do it. This would only apply to the UK so MS may be willing to accept radical to get it done. allot depends on the EU.

[pitythefool]

So you think they’ll just heavily handicap their second biggest market, doesn’t really seem smart does it.

[BehindTheRows]

Which negates none of what I said. Unless the CMA bends, the deal is off.

Considering their history of not bending, Microsoft has a very long uphill battle ahead.

[__SteakDeck__]

I have a question. Does MS really need the CMA to pass this. What if the FTC and the EU approve the deal?

[AmUnRa]

Yes, it would be diificult for MS they could not bring the games excl for the UK, and theyr is a big change that the EU will follw suite and block the deal also. That will be the end of it. It would make no sence for MS.

The usual xboxfanboys on this site are very silence about this. They where convinced that it was a done deal. That backfired like hell. Whe can wait for the damagecontrol, it will be fun.....

[__SteakDeck__]

@AmUnRa If you were a betting man, would you say the appeal fails?

[Aloymetal]

'' Whe can wait for the damagecontrol, it will be fun.....''
Add to that the infinite amount of interviews about Phil explaining/spinning and telling everyone how this CMA decision was bad for the gamers...

[Hofstaderman]

UK is their second largest market. Think of the ramifications.

[darkrider]

I hope Microsoft gamers understand they aren't losing any games!!!!! All those games are coming out on the series consoles. Microsoft was taking games from all other gamers.

This week's are being some of the worst in the history of Microsoft. It's just one hit after another... Great work Phil.

[Vanfernal]

EXACTLY. With this decision Xbox players lose NOTHING. If you're salty about this decision it just means you just wanted things to be worse for other players.

[CobraKai]

Wow. So with Sony vs MS taking center stage, it was cloud gaming that ultimately caused the block. Ok, back to coffee and gaming.

[Rdeal]

MS should just shut cloud gaming in the UK and see what CMA says then, they will make more money from buying Activision than they do cloud gaming and it will make the CMA look like clowns because things will be worse for the UK gamer not better

[RNTody]

But I thought everybody was being mean to poor, struggling Microsoft and they needed this deal to be able to compete. Guess MS is dead now? Unless they're *gasp* forced to invest in a game.

[coolbeans]

CMA punching down against the little guy. smh

[KwietStorm_BLM]

The poor little trillion dollar corporation. How will they survive now?

[coolbeans]

Hard to say, but an underdog like MS will get back up and keep fighting.

[Gamingsince1981]

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that was sarcasm no one else got or liked /shrug

[coolbeans]

Pretty much. It's nigh impossible for some posters to read between the obvious lines if a comment doesn't end with /s. It's wild.

[Gamingsince1981]

I mean saying the little guy about MS was obvious sarcasm so I was kinda surprised actually that no one got it, but then again maybe some fans are that delusional that they do believe MS are the little guys lol who knows. All I can say is I thought it was stupidly obvious sarcasm and no one getting that was odd.

[coolbeans]

I've been with this site for a while now and it *STILL* can surprise me.

[RauLeCreuset]

I got it, but have you all read some of the comments on N4G?

You don't have to go far. There are comments on this article that are in the same realm.

[hotnickles]

😂 lame. The people who run our corporations, governments and agencies are the dumbest people on earth

[hotnickles]

I actually agree with the disagrees lol. We put them there directly or indirectly, we are much worse lol.

How would this generation go down in history? What an awful thing to think about lmao. Not this deal but all of the self inflicted wounds made by dumb people in these organizations.

[Babadook7]

I was always on the fence here. Still am. We will see what comes of this.

Personally I don’t like Microsoft buying games that are home on PlayStation.

[anast]

Nice. I guess that trip to the islands gave everyone food poisoning.

[DivineHand125]

Not a good day for Xbox and Xbox gamers. This rejection could have a domino effect on the deal. I was looking forward to playing Activision games on gamepass but it doesn't seem likely.

Perhaps Xbox should try to aquire talent instead of ips from across the industry. This seems to be the main strategy Sony is using and Microsoft needs to follow suite.

[GamingSinceForever]

Why is it not a good day for XBOX gamers when they were going to be able
to play the same games regardless of the merger?

[DivineHand125]

Not sure if you are serious with that response but Xbox and PC gamers would have been able to play Activision games on gamepass without needing to pay full price. That would have been a huge win for them but now we are back to the status quo. $70 for COD, Diablo and other titles.

[DarkZane]

@DivineHand125 This is why Square-Enix is not releasing their games on Xbox, not because Sony made a deal. You people are now so cheap you want everything given to you for free and not support the developer.

The other reason is that they'd have to make the game for Series S too, which would hold them back.

[GamingSinceForever]

I overlooked that part of your comment. Fair point I suppose.

[kingnick]

This will just drag on even longer and regardless of the outcome in the meantime the uncertainty means ABK will be even more risk averse with their games then they already were (they're not known for being innovative or taking risks and Blizzard have fallen off now milking their existing IPs and making games that cater to the mass market).

IMO ABK represents some of the worse tendencies of the industry, it will be interesting to see what happens to Kotick if the merger doesn't go through.

I can see ABK retaliating against Sony and making a smaller game(s) exclusive to Xbox/PC, Kotick is that petty.

[Exvalos]

When it rains it pours over at Microsoft.

[KINGS47]

COME ON LADS !!!!!!!! GET INNNNN !!!!!!!!!!! LETS GET THEM !!!!!!!!!

[Monkeycan8]

lol

[MadLad]

The deal is far from dead ..

[AmUnRa]

And then you wake up and realise it was a dream....

[__SteakDeck__]

@MadLad Ya’ll just tell ya selves anything. It’s like that girl that keeps rejecting you and you keep saying “she’ll go out with me eventually, I know she will” Lol

[DiRtY]

Still so sure about it?

I think that girl spent the night at his house, didn’t she?

[badz149]

a madlad indeed! bravo

[JagX22]

I'm not on a side here but wanted to call out that Apple recently appealed a CMA decision and won (March 31, 2023). They appeal to the Competition Appeals Tribune (CAT). It's a last ditch effort that Microsoft/ABK can make but it's not impossible. We'll see how that goes...

Now I wonder what the EU will say next month.

[RauLeCreuset]

That appeal was won on a procedural technicality.

"Per Reuters, Apple successfully argued the regulator had “no power” to investigate its position in the mobile browser market. The company said the CMA should have opened the probe at the same time it first published its report on mobile ecosystems last June. The Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT), the court that oversees CMA cases, agreed with Apple, saying the regulator gave notice of its investigation too late."

https://www.engadget.com/ap...

[JagX22]

Personally, I don't feel that Microsoft will stand a chance against the CAT. Especially after reading the details in the CMA's 415 pg. decision. I believe the CMA was thorough in their review. It will be even more detrimental if the EU surprises us and also decides against this deal. But, I think we've all learned by now to never say never until it is absolutely a never.

[thecodingart]

Good

[Vengeance1138]

Sony stock is actually skyrocketing today because of this lol

[SaveFerris]

I guess Microsoft was a tad premature with the London Underground advertisement, huh?
pic.twitter.com/lbq7ES1mF0

[Drakul]

Just L-A-M-E!

[IamTylerDurden1]

MS will fight it and win by 2024.

[Gamingsince1981]

They have to pay 3 billion for taking longer than June to close the deal. It won't go through, they can't leave the UK market.

[IamTylerDurden1]

We'll see.

[tbagmonster]

and yet the deal is still being pushed through

[Gamingsince1981]

Ok buddy 👌 lol if the deal "pushes" through it won't be legal in EU or the UK so xboxs 2 biggest markets after its biggest the US which its already being beaten in. It would be suicide commercially and if for some reason you think this will happen you're only to blame when you get let down.

[__SteakDeck__]

If the CMA blocks it how will that be possible? Lol

[generic-user-name]

I think Denial is either the first or second stage, can't remember.

[DiRtY]

Will you apologize?

[cammers1995]

HA-HA!

[gangsta_red]

The best part is the reasons the deal was blocked are not even the reasons everyone argued for and against.

[CS7]

My argument was always you cant buy two of the biggest publishers of an entire industry. That’s insane and I stick to it.

[Gamingsince1981]

And ?

[gangsta_red]

"And nothing! ...you belong to me now..." - Unicron

[thesoftware730]

@gangsta

Love that movie!

Had to put my sons onto it a while back.

[SonyStyled]

Don't leave us hanging… what’s the worst part?

[gangsta_red]

The worse part was it was bad for gamers and MS is a monopoly!!

[ghostrider32]

Maybe those idiots, will start using that money to acquire talent and form more first party studios. If MS were going to spend almost 70 billion on Activision, they can easily invest in their first party. It's not like Activision was skipping Xbox. How is Phil and others not fired yet? Any other company, would have acquired new management years ago.

[Profchaos]

Off topic but it's a little worrying I'm seeing comments that are perfectly fine not personally attacking anyone but maybe calling out a camp of people not in a insulting way being blocked as inappropriate

I really hope this isn't the future of the site.

Both camps should be perfectly fine with expressing their opinion for or against without being punished for it as long as it's not personally calling out another member or slanderous or obviously offensive

[Gamingsince1981]

I dont think personal call outs are allowed no matter how nice they look but I may be wrong.

[Profchaos]

Exactly right no personal call outs allowed as far as I'm aware but I'm talking about comments getting labelled as inappropriate despite having no call outs to a individual more like hey company A is bad because company B does C

[coolbeans]

A part of me isn't thrilled to (potentially) continue this conversation via comment section, but here goes nothing.

What *specific* example(s) within this comment section do you find worrying for getting marked? Because I've skimmed through a couple of the ones I didn't touch and they seemed like fine examples to mark to prevent derailment. I think you have to consider a slightly broader view when it comes to reining in the topic at hand, especially since it seems like the vast majority of 350+ comments here aren't marked.

[northpaws]

While Microsoft is preoccupied with the acquisition, it is the Xbox gamers who suffer the most; they should invest that money in developing quality games instead.

[Crows90]

Thats what a gaming company would do that has passion for gaming...MS is not that kind of company.

[Profchaos]

It's quite amazing that this was blocked without the PlayStation or Nintendo issues being part of the reason for the block.

I think it's fair cloud gaming is in its infancy however I don't see it as being a viable market in the future but Microsoft having control of Activision could potentially hamper up and coming companies ability to compete in the space.

The fact is cloud gaming is a joke right now but could be the future and Microsoft would have a unfair advantage and be able to build a monopoly in the space despite offering 10 year deals to competitng cloud companies like they have when they drop Activision games for free on xcloud other services make their users buy it and a sub it doesn't result in a fair space

The CMA is a watchdog for the little guy and Sony is not the little guy here even if they had some points and Jim Ryan kind of damaged his own rep by pushing propaganda I love Sony and have every single PlayStation console but I still dislike Jim Ryan however I really liked Kaz and Shaun prior.

[RauLeCreuset]

That's incorrect. Playstation exists in both markets, console and cloud. Jim Ryan just made a lot of people look like fools who fell for the MS propaganda and crowed about how he should have accepted a deal for COD that would have helped MS make their case to the CMA.

[Profchaos]

Playstation only exists in cloud in a limited capacity in select countries and it's a service that hasn't been upgraded to a higher quality for a very long time. I'm a PS deluxe subscriber I have zero cloud functionality.

I'd look more at the likes of ge force now and smaller streaming providers the CMA ruling was essentially if ms takes Activision then those smaller companies will struggle to compete

[RauLeCreuset]

"I'd look more at the likes of ge force now and smaller streaming providers the CMA ruling was essentially if ms takes Activision then those smaller companies will struggle to compete."

The CMA decision literally lists Sony as an emerging rival in the cloud market.

"We are concerned that making Activision’s titles exclusive to Microsoft’s cloud gaming service would harm competition, particularly since our view is that Microsoft already holds a strong position in this market by virtue of its 19 unparalleled advantages through its ownership of Windows, its cloud infrastructure, and its existing catalogue of first party titles. There are a few emerging rivals with their own respective strengths, such as Amazon, Sony, and NVIDIA, but none seem to be as well positioned as Microsoft in this market."

https://assets.publishing.s...

[Crows90]

Oh wow. This is the best news in gaming for a long time. Keep competition healthy by keeping 3rd party independent as much as possible. Nothing is stopping Microsoft from paying one of these developers to build them a triple A exclusive.

[BlaqMagiq1]

This is great news! Hopefully the FTC follows suit as they should!

[__SteakDeck__]

The FTC wants to block it, it’s those federal judges than will favor MS that won’t.

[GhostScholar]

For the love of god I don’t care if it’s blocked or approved I just want to stop hearing about it!

[SeTTriP]

Show you how much I know, I would've bet cash on this deal going through.

But I'm relieved to see that this type of precedent isn't being set, bravo cma.Now the Xbox division has 69billion freed up, support your studios ffs 🤦‍♂️.

I mean Sony was still going to go 🏀🏀 deep even with the deal but hopefully now Ms can focus on the right 💩, like talent acquisition something Sony totally has a monopoly on. High end gaming (as MS put it) doesn't happen without the talent to bring it to life and Activision ain't it.

It was never going to help anyways if it makes you Xbox fans fill better.

[Nacho_Z]

I doubt they will retain the money to spend on Xbox. The way I understand it is that it's like a dad lending his son a large sum of money to buy a house. If the deal falls through he's not going to let him keep the money to spend on whatever he feels like, he'll want it back.

Not to mention that the dad will be stuck with huge bills even though the deal didn't go through:

"As a reminder, Microsoft will owe Activision Blizzard $3 billion if the deal is not completed."

[343_Guilty_Spark]

Didn’t have an argument for console games so CMA went cloud gaming. Incredible.

[darkrider]

They did have argument for consoles games, but cloud gaming it's even more clear. No one wants monopoly.... That simple.

[badz149]

MS made a huge deal about Sony being "too big", "dominant" and "monopolistic" in the console market as their argument on why they should be allowed to buy ABK. so, MS made a point that being "too big", "dominant" and "monopolistic" in any market is BAD, right? The CMA just said ok, but you already have 2/3 market share in the cloud gaming department that you have claimed for so many years as "The Future of Gaming", doesn't that mean that you're "too big", "dominant" and "monopolistic" in that market and this buyout will make your dominance even more apparent? so...what's up with that?

BLOCKED!

[343_Guilty_Spark]

They have 2/3rds because everyone else who tried cloud gaming either didn’t want to keep at, didn’t want to invest in it, or simply didn’t think it would ever be big enough. How is that MSFTs fault?

[Crows90]

"They have 2/3rds because everyone else who tried cloud gaming either didn’t want to keep at, didn’t want to invest in it, or simply didn’t think it would ever be big enough. How is that MSFTs fault?"

Why is sonys success with 1st party exclusives sonys fault? MS just doesnt want to stick with it...

[343_Guilty_Spark]

Wtf does that have to do with what I said?

Btw MSFT has had success just not to the same extent as Sony.

[AmUnRa]

Keep capping...

[WelkinCole]

For the life of me I still can't understand why MS can't follow Sony's and Nins 1st party model

They always had way more money than Sony yet they still can't emulate Sony's playstation success.

Imagine if MS spent enough money and time cultuvating a team that can rival ND or SM. Imagine the game franchises that any gamer that will buy an xbox would get.

It can be done.If Sony can why can't MS?

Instead they do these stupid things like Google tried

[Profchaos]

From what I've seen historically Microsoft doesn't know when it's appropriate to shelve a popular IP, reimagine it or continue it.

They iced popular IP when's single game didn't meet expectations like banjo Kazooie or conquer but have their three main games halo gears and Forza living in sequel city.

The way Microsoft runs it's studios feels like a American ideal of let's do the same thing that sold but bigger and better we can't do anything else because this is what our fans want. But if game 1 fails there's no redemption for it. If sunset was successful we'd have a sequel or nuts and bolts.

[FGHFGHFGH]

They tried with 343, the gears developer, and the other AAAA studio that I don't remember because they never made a game.

[WelkinCole]

Obviously they are not doing it right. Rare for example.Yes Bungie. With all they money they have somehow they still cant properly manage new or old talent.

[Rodney25]

No one, not Sony, not Microsoft should be buying huge 3rd party studios like this. It only hurts everyone in the end. If the two companies had a very close working relationship for years and did this that'd be different, but this purchase was just so random.

[Crows90]

So was the whole zenimax purchase. I mean people are still expecting starfield on playstation. Thats how freaking unexpected it is.

[TriniOutsider]

MS should put that money into their studios. Instead of them thinking they can buy up everything. Now that Sony is out of the picture.

[Relientk77]

Huge win for gamers!

[Traecy]

LMAO!

[gerbintosh]

The whole MS "Welcome to the family Activision" ads have aged as well as George Bush's "Mission Accomplished"

[FlameWater]

Go home UK, you're drunk

[Crows90]

Have you been to california?

[VariantAEC]

Must have visited recently and drank the contaminated saltwater water in LA.

[MrSec84]

We'd be drunk over here to accept a monopoly like this happening, very anti-competition on Microsoft and Activision's part!!

[FlameWater]

How is it anti-competition if they want to be allies? Was WW2 anti-competition?

[UltimateRacer]

Great news for Gaming and Gamers.

[shinoff2183]

In some alternate bubble this deal went through and parties were had everywhere.

[Lexreborn2]

So is it time to now properly deal with Bobby boy?

[S2Killinit]

I never thought anyone would stand against these mega-corporations, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised by this development.

I hope that even if they manage to achieve the acquisition, MS chokes on it.

[S2Killinit]

Now what happens with Activision after they burned their bridges with the Playstation platform? Bobby Kotick is eating his words with a side of crow sauce.

[343_Guilty_Spark]

Don’t cut anymore deals with Sony is what is going to happen

[pitythefool]

Deal being blocked has zero to do with Sony, shows where all the Xbox guys heads are though.

You guys just wanted to be able to gloat.

[MrSec84]

Very unlikely, given PlayStation is where they sell most of their games and Sony gives them a tonne of cash in sales that's not happening.
Activision will be happy Microsoft going to have to pay them $3 Billion for the deal not going through.
Share holders won't be happy with Bobby for losing out on that $70B income, the company is likely to become devalued as a result!

[generic-user-name]

The $3b that MS will be forced to give Acti will likely make the PS5 exclusive content really shine going forward.

[VariantAEC]

How did ABK burn bridges with PS? Failed acquisition deals with a rival don't necessarily mean companies are in a new type of competition. I don't think this will hurt the relationship ABK has with PS.

[Abear21]

I celebrate more choices for consumers so this is a win, for now, always good when great games can be enjoyed on more than one box.

[Bronbron92]

Sooooo does this mean Xbox isn’t going to try putting cod on the switch now? Lol

[dcbronco]

Since the cma doesn't seem to have an issue with exclusivity deals like the one preventing Microsoft from getting Square games Microsoft can get an exclusivity deal blocking Sony from all Activision games. For about 5 years at least. But I'm assuming the check the cma got from Sony will make them block that deal too. Sony must have paid a lot of money.

[AndrewM]

Hahaha the check sony gave them?

[pitythefool]

Well why didn’t the wealthier company write a bigger cheque.

[kingnick]

Because it's not sustainable to run a business based around paying off third parties to have games on your platform or for timed exclusives especially when your platform has a much smaller userbase. MS has to cut much larger checks then Sony for all those missed potential sales.

Paying SE for the privilege of their games being on Xbox and PS simply wouldn't have been worth it and an irresponsible use of shareholders money. The deal MS did for FFXIII in hindsight was a bad one and while they did do future deals with SE I doubt any of those deals paid off either.

SE is a mess these days thanks to their management so if Sony do buy SE and remove management it may be for the best.

[S2Killinit]

@kingnick
Its so funny watching people pretend like they don’t know that the reason MS is trying to spend 68 BILLION dollars is BECAUSE they didn't invest in their own studios for 4 generations. They literally purchased exclusivity at the beginning of each generation when instal basses were small and this was why in the second half of each generation xbox consoles slowed down while Playstation consoles continued to put out masterpieces. But hey, lets pretend its Sony that relies on exclusivity deals. Ridiculous.

[BrainSyphoned]

Xbox would have seen this coming but they were stuck at 30fps.

[Pyrofire95]

I only want this deal to happen because Activision is HORDING all these IP and M$ MIGHT be able to use them if they can figure out how to release some games.
I'm expecting some disagrees for that one, but they seriously have had a rough time at actually releasing stuff and when they do it's usually in controversy. Only exceptions this gen are Forza and Hi-Fi Rush.

[VariantAEC]

Maybe MS should figure out how to release some games first!?
If MS were a good gaming company I wouldn't care about this acquisition.
Unfortunately as MS stands today they're just terrible, I'm glad this was blocked hopefully their appeal also fail, this is a clear attempt to steal loads of IP to sit on and do nothing with just so PS might lose some market share.

[Pyrofire95]

I don't think the PS part you mention at the end has much to do with it. COD would still be multiplat, at least for a while. I also don't think $68 billion is an efficient way to build market share nor something you would spend just to sit on IP.

[kingnick]

MS/ABK will appeal and if that is rejected they might try to restructure their businesses then try again.

The costs to rollout cloud infrastructure is huge so what I think this will do is discourage future players from rolling out competing cloud platforms because companies will have to fear if they gain majority marketshare in a region regulators in said region will try to dictate how they run their business.

There's regions other platforms have high percentages of marketshare but you don't see governments/regulators blocking acquisitions in those regions.

I don't want to see Kotick get a golden parachute so if the merge doesn't go ahead that's a positive.

I never bought the line that ABK would become a much better company if MS bought them out, the company has a toxic culture and just replacing Kotick and some management was unlikely to fix that IMO.

[blackblades]

Biggest news I ever seen on this site over 350 comments.

[generic-user-name]

It's like Christmas day for PlayStation fans and the apocalypse for the Xbox nation.

[DiRtY]

😂😂😂

[FinalFantasyFanatic]

I'm partially not surprised this happened, mainly because of the size and scope of this acquisition, I also had a feeling that it would be blocked because of how long the deal has been scrutinized for. If it was a done deal, it would have passed sooner, I'm glad that anti-competition bodies like the UK's CMA are actually have a hard long think on the ramifications of passing/not passing this deal.

[Runechaz]

Whahahaha Nice !