{"id":395982,"date":"2022-01-19T00:11:24","date_gmt":"2022-01-18T21:11:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/microsofts-69b-activision-blizzard-deal-sets-stage-for-antitrust-soap-opera\/"},"modified":"2022-01-19T00:11:24","modified_gmt":"2022-01-18T21:11:24","slug":"microsofts-69b-activision-blizzard-deal-sets-stage-for-antitrust-soap-opera","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/microsofts-69b-activision-blizzard-deal-sets-stage-for-antitrust-soap-opera\/","title":{"rendered":"#Microsoft\u2019s $69B Activision-Blizzard deal sets stage for antitrust \u2018soap opera\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;<strong>#Microsoft\u2019s $69B Activision-Blizzard deal sets stage for antitrust \u2018soap opera\u2019<\/strong>&#8221;<\/p>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>Microsoft has managed to fly under the regulatory radar as big tech competitors like Google, Amazon and Meta take heat in Washington, D.C. and Brussels \u2014 but the company\u2019s plan to acquire scandal-ridden <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/game\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"7\" title=\"Game\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">game<\/a> developer Activision-Blizzard for $68.7 billion could change everything.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>If the deal closes, it would give the maker of the Xbox console control of some of the world\u2019s most popular video game franchises, including Call of Duty, World of Warcraft and Candy Crush. That level of concentration across both hardware and software is bound to attract attention from antitrust authorities, according to tech and D.C. insiders.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is going to be a soap opera,\u201d Wedbush Securities managing director Dan Ives told The Post. \u201cThere\u2019s going to be a lot of scrutiny.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>With a market capitalization of $2.3 trillion, Microsoft is the world\u2019s second most valuable company after <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">App<\/a>le, with business lines in everything from cloud computing to <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">social<\/a> networking. Yet even as competition authorities in the US and Europe have trained their sights on Apple, Google, Amazon and Meta in recent years, Microsoft has largely avoided any trouble.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>That environment has put Microsoft in a unique position among tech giants: It\u2019s big enough to pony up $68.7 billion in cash, but low-key enough to have a chance of getting the deal past regulators.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-default\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/01\/Satya-Nadella.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"Satya Nadella\" class=\"wp-image-20874547\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/01\/Satya-Nadella.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/01\/Satya-Nadella.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/01\/Satya-Nadella.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Microsoft, which is led by CEO Satya Nadella, is big enough to pony up $68.7 billion in cash but low-key enough to potentially get the deal past regulators.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">AFP via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cMicrosoft knows there\u2019s only one company that can do a deal like this,\u201d Ives said, giving the deal a 75% to 80% chance of going through.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>That uncertainty appeared to be reflected in Activision-Blizzard\u2019s stock price, which stood was hovering around $82 on Tuesday afternoon \u2014 well short of the $95 per share Microsoft wants to pay for the company.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The FTC and DOJ declined to comment on Tuesday during a press conference on Tuesday when asked about any potential investigations or lawsuits around the Microsoft-Activision deal. Insiders say either agency could potentially try to block the deal.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-default\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/01\/ACTIVISION-MICROSOFT2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-20874575\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/01\/ACTIVISION-MICROSOFT2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/01\/ACTIVISION-MICROSOFT2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/01\/ACTIVISION-MICROSOFT2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Activision-Blizzard is the developer behind Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, Candy Crush and many other popular video game franchises. <\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">EPA<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In another sign of potential trouble, the deal includes a $3 billion \u201cbreak-up fee\u201d that Microsoft will pay Activision-Blizzard if the deal fails to go through \u2014 a far higher fee than the $1 billion that would typically be included in a deal of this size, according to Ives.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s Activision hedging their bets,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Matt Stoller, an antitrust expert and activist and former staffer for Sen. Bernie Sanders, also said the high break-up fee means Microsoft and Activision-Blizzard are bracing for trouble.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-default\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/01\/ACTIVISION-MICROSOFT5-1.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"Microsoft\" class=\"wp-image-20874609\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/01\/ACTIVISION-MICROSOFT5-1.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/01\/ACTIVISION-MICROSOFT5-1.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/01\/ACTIVISION-MICROSOFT5-1.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Microsoft is the world\u2019s second most valuable company with a market capitalization of $2.3 trillion. <\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">REUTERS<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Stoller compared the deal to Disney\u2019s acquisitions of Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm and large parts of 21st Century Fox, which he argues have given the company a monopoly in the entertainment industry.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMicrosoft is trying to do to the gaming industry what Disney did to Hollywood,\u201d Stoller told The Post. \u201cIt should be blocked.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>A potential antitrust case over the Activision deal would not be the first time Microsoft has been accused of building a monopoly. <\/p>\n<p>In the late 1990s, the company was sued by the Justice Department over its practice of bundling the Windows Explorer browser with the Windows operating system for free. Microsoft settled the case in 2002 and agreed to make it easier for competitors to run their software on Windows devices.\n                        <\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. 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