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Microsoft-Activision Deal To Face Antitrust Scrutiny

By  |  January 19, 2022

Microsoft’s US$69 billion deal to buy video game powerhouse Activision Blizzard is expected to win out with regulators despite vows in Europe and the US to rein in tech titans, reported The Wall Street Journal.

Analysts interviewed by AFP after the merger plan was announced on Tuesday, January 18, said the deal would certainly be scrutinized, but likely less intensely than would an acquisition by Amazon, Google, or Facebook-parent Meta.

“From a regulatory perspective, Microsoft is not under the same level of scrutiny as other tech stalwarts,” said Wedbush analyst Dan Ives.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella “saw a window to make a major bet on consumer while others are caught in the regulatory spotlight and could not go after an asset like this,” Ives added.

The analyst noted that there are bound to be some “speed bumps navigating both the Beltway and Brussels” given the epic size of the deal.

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