Microsoft & Activision Blizzard agree to extend deal deadline to October 2023
Microsoft and Activision's boards mutually agreed to the extended deal deadline as Microsoft continues its efforts to satisfy UK regulatory authorities.
The original deal deadline for Microsoft and Activision Blizzard to close their merger came down to the wire this week, but an extension of the deadline has been agreed upon by both companies. The United Kingdom’s Competition and Markets Authority remains one of the very last roadblocks in the way of the deal’s closure and with the deadline being extended to October by Microsoft and Activision Blizzard, both companies seem confident they will have enough time to settle remaining matters.
Activision Blizzard announced the deadline extension in an SEC filing alongside the release of its Q2 2023 earnings results. With the move, Activision Blizzard and Microsoft’s own deadlines on the deal move from July this week to October 18, 2023.
Source: Activision Blizzard
If for some reason, matters outstanding are still in play by that date, the deal will be terminated, but Activision Blizzard shared a statement of confidence that the deal will be settled by then:
This coincides with a date extension by the UK’s CMA in renegotiating terms with Microsoft on the deal. This will allow a further probe to ensure the merger smooths out antitrust concerns presented by the regulatory body when it previously blocked the deal.
Where it seemed as though final decisions would be made this week, it looks like we still have a couple months ahead of us in the Microsoft and Activision Blizzard deal. With the FTC’s case settled and the CMA being one of the only remaining major obstacles, it will be interesting to see what happens in the months ahead as Microsoft continues to try to push the deal to a close.
-
Shacknews
replyTJ Denzer posted a new article, Microsoft & Activision Blizzard agree to extend deal deadline to October 2023
