Microsoft wins FTC battle to acquire Activision Blizzard


A federal judge on Tuesday gave Microsoft the green light to move forward with its acquisition of video game developer Activision Blizzard. The company still faces an antitrust lawsuit by the Federal Trade Commission, but U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley ruled against the regulator's request for a temporary injunction.
Throughout the intense five-day hearing, the FTC argued that the proposed merger would allow Microsoft to make Activision games like "Candy Crush," "World of Warcraft" and "Call of Duty" exclusive to Xbox, effectively blocking out its competitors at Sony, the creators of the PlayStation, and Nintendo. The hearing ended up revealing behind-the-scenes information about the typically tight-lipped industry. The judge ultimately disagreed with the FTC's assertion that the merger would harm consumers or limit competition in the video game industry. "To the contrary, the record evidence points to more consumer access to Call of Duty and other Activision content," she wrote in her opinion.
The companies are still trying to secure merger approval in the U.K. after the Competition and Markets Authority blocked the deal in April over concerns Microsoft would monopolize the cloud gaming market. After the FTC decision, the CMA and Microsoft agreed to pause the legal battle to determine ways to modify the deal to address the regulator's concerns. The pause needs to be approved, "but it increasingly looks like all parties are willing to secure a remedy in the U.K.," per The Verge.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Microsoft has until July 18 to finish the $69-billion deal, or it risks paying fees or renegotiating terms with Activision. If the company can pass all the barriers, it will boost the industry and "mark a victory for its efforts to charm agencies that have become more stringent about how they review big tech deals," The Wall Street Journal reported.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Theara Coleman has worked as a staff writer at The Week since September 2022. She frequently writes about technology, education, literature and general news. She was previously a contributing writer and assistant editor at Honeysuckle Magazine, where she covered racial politics and cannabis industry news.
-
Christian Brückner: why prime suspect in Madeleine McCann case can refuse Met interview
The Explainer International letter of request rejected by 49-year-old convicted rapist as he prepares to walk free
-
Angela Rayner: the rise and fall of a Labour stalwart
In the Spotlight Deputy prime minister resigned after she underpaid £40,000 in stamp duty
-
Crossword: September 16, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
-
New York court tosses Trump's $500M fraud fine
Speed Read A divided appeals court threw out a hefty penalty against President Trump for fraudulently inflating his wealth
-
Trump said to seek government stake in Intel
Speed Read The president and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly discussed the proposal at a recent meeting
-
US to take 15% cut of AI chip sales to China
Speed Read Nvidia and AMD will pay the Trump administration 15% of their revenue from selling artificial intelligence chips to China
-
NFL gets ESPN stake in deal with Disney
Speed Read The deal gives the NFL a 10% stake in Disney's ESPN sports empire and gives ESPN ownership of NFL Network
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B deal
Speed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
-
FCC greenlights $8B Paramount-Skydance merger
Speed Read The Federal Communications Commission will allow Paramount to merge with the Hollywood studio Skydance
-
Tesla reports plummeting profits
Speed Read The company may soon face more problems with the expiration of federal electric vehicle tax credits
-
Dollar faces historic slump as stocks hit new high
Speed Read While stocks have recovered post-Trump tariffs, the dollar has weakened more than 10% this year