Report: Microsoft Prepared to Fight FTC in Court Over Activision Blizzard Merger

Credit: Microsoft/Activision Blizzard

Microsoft will fight the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in court if it attempts to block its proposed $69B USD acquisition of Call of Duty, Overwatch, and World of Warcraft maker Activision Blizzard. This is according to a source “familiar with the situation” who spoke to Bloomberg on Friday and follows reporting earlier this week from Politico who claimed that the government agency was mulling over whether it would oppose the deal in U.S. courts.

Microsoft is also allegedly in talks with Sony to allow Activision Blizzard’s popular shooter Call of Duty to remain available on PlayStation platforms over the next ten years, according to reports. This move is supposedly to appease concerns from UK, European Union, and other regulators in juridstriction around the world who oppose the deal because it limits competitions.

On a bright but minor note, the government of Serbia gave a green light to the merger, joining Brazil and Saudi Arabia as nations that will not oppose the merger if it should happen next year.