The U.K. market regulatory authority says it is awaiting Microsoft’s restructured proposal to acquire Activision Blizzard. It was announced last week that the two parties would pause litigation to try and work out a remedy over the CMA’s move to block the deal back in April.
The seeming change of heart on the part of the CMA came after the FTC in the US lost its preliminary injunction hearing against Microsoft and Activision, as well as the subsequent appeal of that decision. This along with Sony’s recent move to sign a binding agreement to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation, has put the CMA in an increasingly isolated position in its opposition to the deal.
Speaking to Sky News CMA boss Sarah Cardell said,
We understand from Microsoft that they would like to put forward proposals to us to restructure the deal, potentially re-notifying that deal, to address our competition concerns. If they do that we will consider those restructured proposals carefully.
It’s unclear whether the regulator would launch a new investigation in light of a restructured deal, but it has suggested that it could do so. Earlier this week Microsoft and Activision extended their merger deadline by three months.
Featured image via Financial Times.
