Activision Blizzard’s $68.7 billion acquisition by Microsoft is now complete. Activision Blizzard has been formally added to Microsoft’s portfolio after many months of legal disputes between competing gaming businesses and authorities. This is the computer giant’s largest acquisition to date. While the specifics of the roadmap are yet unknown, the acquisition gives Microsoft ownership of some of the largest gaming titles, including Candy Crush Saga, Overwatch, and Call of Duty.
Several industry participants, including Sony, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), opposed the $68.7 billion merger when the maker of the Xbox first revealed its plan to acquire Activision Blizzard. In an effort to persuade authorities, Microsoft struck exclusive long-term agreements with numerous gaming firms and platforms by early 2023, including Nvidia, Boosteroid, Nintendo, and Ubitus. Sony eventually agreed to a Call of Duty contract with Microsoft in July after first rejecting a comparable offer.
Microsoft was compelled to modify its initial proposed transaction after CMA banned the Activision Blizzard acquisition.
The redmond based giant moved quickly to complete the acquisition of Activision Blizzard after the CMA approved the agreement’s renewal. Activision Blizzard as a whole is joining Xbox, according to Xbox CEO Phil Spencer’s formal statement. The agreement surpasses the $26 billion LinkedIn acquisition made by the firm in 2016 and makes Microsoft the third-largest gaming company in terms of sales, behind Tencent and Sony. As a result of the announcement, Xbox Game Pass will now include Activision Blizzard titles.
Players may anticipate an update on Activision Blizzard games coming to Game Pass in the coming month. The firm made it clear earlier this week that some of the more recent games, including Diablo 4 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, won’t be included in Game Pass this year. However, speculations indicate that earlier Call of Duty games might be included to Game Pass very soon.
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