Brad Smith, Vice-Chair and President of Microsoft, has expressed his disappointment with the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) decision to appeal the court ruling that handed Microsoft a major victory by declining to block its $69 billion takeover of Activision Blizzard. In a tweet on Wednesday, Smith stated that the court’s ruling is beneficial for competition and consumers and called FTC's case 'demonstrably weak.'
"We’re disappointed that the FTC is continuing to pursue what has become a demonstrably weak case, and we will oppose further efforts to delay the ability to move forward,” Smith said in a statement.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said on Wednesday it was appealing a federal judge's ruling that Microsoft could go forward with its $69 billion purchase of "Call of Duty" maker Activision Blizzard.
Also Read: Microsoft Wins FTC Court Case, One Step Closer To Acquiring Activision Blizzard
Outstanding Hurdles Could Jeopardise Microsoft-Activison Deal
Earlier this week, Microsoft landed a historic victory when it won the US legal battle to acquire gaming giant Activision Blizzard. U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley said in a ruling that the merger deserved scrutiny, considering it could be the largest decision in the history of the tech industry. The FTC had previously sued to block Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision arguing that the deal would give Microsoft an unfair monopoly in the cloud gaming industry. However, a district court denied the FTC’s injunction request, allowing the deal to proceed.
According to Reuters, any outstanding regulatory hurdle makes it more likely that the agreement between Microsoft and Activision will expire on July 18 which will stop the deal from going through. After July 18, either company will be free to walk away from the deal unless they negotiate an extension.
Britain's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which had opposed the deal as well, said on Wednesday that a 'restructured deal' between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard could satisfy their concerns, subject to a new investigation. "Whilst merging parties don't have the opportunity to put forward new remedies once a final report has been issued, they can choose to restructure a deal, which can lead to a new merger investigation," the CMA said on Wednesday.