2023-05-16 07:35:54
It is an important victory that Microsoft has just won in its project to get its hands on Activision-Blizzard. The European Commission gave its approval, Monday, May 15, so that the giant of Redmond (United States), which markets XBox consoles, can acquire the publisher of successful titles such as Call of Duty, World of Warcraft or CandyCrush. If it were to come to fruition, the operation would constitute the biggest merger-acquisition ever carried out in the video game sector, for an amount of approximately 70 billion euros.
The Brussels decision is all the more welcome for Microsoft as the British Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) vetoed this agreement on April 26. She reacted immediately on Monday: “Even if we recognize that the European Commission is entitled to issue a contrary opinion [au nôtre], the CMA stands by its position. »
Brussels allowed itself to be persuaded by the tokens of goodwill provided by the American firm. To succeed in persuading the authorities that its project did not have a monopolistic vision, Microsoft offered its competitors to guarantee them access to Activision titles for ten years, with an equal level of quality, including in the field of cloud gaming (a technology that allows online gaming from a phone, console, PC, tablet or television).
“Dynamic Technology”
An activity that some analysts think will be the future of the sector, even if it is only embryonic today. Among the major players who have said they are in favor of such an arrangement, there are Nintendo, but also Nvidia, which only has an online gaming service (GeForce NOW). Conversely, Sony, the producer of the PlayStation, the second largest player in the sector behind Tencent, has constantly opposed the operation.
The Commission’s analysis is radically different from that of London. Both agree that Microsoft would have no interest in reserving Activision Blizzard’s games for its consoles alone, which are far fewer in number than Sony’s. But unlike the CMA, the European authority considers that the guarantees provided by the American company “represent a marked improvement over the current situation with regard to cloud gaming”.
On the contrary, this agreement “will stimulate the development of this dynamic technology”she believes. ” The engagements [de Microsoft] fully address the competition concerns raised by the Commission.even underlines this one in its press release, after having carried out an economic analysis of the market and carried out hearings with market players.
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