FTC given temp grant to stop Microsoft purchase of Activision Blizzard
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July 18 is supposed to be the deadline for the deal to either be signed or for an extension to be discussed. If neither of those is reached, Microsoft will owe Activision Blizzard a $3 billion fee for the breakup.
Tuesday witnessed the FTC's request for a temporary restraining order by a federal judge to prohibit Microsoft from sealing its purchase of gaming giant Activision Blizzard.
July 18 is supposed to be the deadline for the deal to either be signed or for an extension to be discussed. If neither of those is reached, Microsoft will owe Activision Blizzard a $3 billion fee for the breakup.
According to the court order, Microsoft and Activision are forbidden from closing the deal "until after 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time on the fifth business day after the Court rules on the FTC’s request for a preliminary injunction or a date set by the Court, whichever is later".
An evidential hearing is now scheduled for June 22 and 23. After those dates, the court will still be required to rule on the actual preliminary injunction.
Read more: Microsoft's bid to buy Activision Blizzard faces anti-trust threat
This comes after the FTC filed for the restraining order and preliminary injunction on Monday, which is the result of the announcement of the acquisition back in January 2022.
Microsoft announced that it was acquiring the video game producer for nearly $70 billion, possibly the priciest-ever tech acquisition, and this deal would see Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick walking with $390 million.
Microsoft, who owns Xbox, said the purchase would better the gaming world, not shying away from mentioning the metaverse and saying it would advance its ambitions for the virtual universe.
The acquisition will see changes for all gaming platforms, especially those on consoles other than Microsoft's Xbox, and even for mobile gaming.
However, mobile gamers should not be concerned, as RBC analyst Rishi Jaluria asserted that there would probably be no changes at all "for the average person who is playing Candy Crush or anything else.
As of yet, the EU has given the okay for the deal to go through, the UK has not (a decision Microsoft is appealing), and the US FTC is attempting actively to block it.
