Microsoft/Activision deal will be approved by the EU, sources say

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Last fall, it looked like trouble for Microsoft when the European Union launched a full investigation into its acquisition of Activision, but now it looks like Microsoft will emerge victorious. Three people familiar with the European Commission's view on the matter told Reuters that by agreeing to make some additional concessions, Microsoft would likely get EU antitrust approval on April 25.

According to Reuters, the European Commission should not ask Microsoft to divest a large part of Activision, such as the separation of its Call of Duty business, to obtain approval. Instead, the long-term, lucrative game licensing deals that Microsoft has offered to rivals might suffice, in addition to agreeing to "other behavioral remedies to assuage concerns from parties other than Sony," it said. an insider at Reuters.

Microsoft declined Ars' request for comment, but the company told Reuters it is "committed to delivering effective and easily enforceable solutions that address the European Commission's concerns." Microsoft has previously opposed any proposed solution requiring the merged companies to sell the Call of Duty franchise.

Earlier this month, the UK indicated that its antitrust approval of the acquisition could depend on such a sale. An Activision spokesperson told Ars at the time that the company hoped to help the UK government "better understand our industry" to avoid selling Call of Duty or dividing other parts of Activision's business. .

Microsoft had a big chance to sway the UK this week when it attended a private hearing with the UK's antitrust watchdog, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA ), to discuss "possible remedies," Bloomberg reported. Sources said Microsoft had offered to pay a third-party monitor to oversee the company's compliance with any behavioral remedies offered by the UK to approve the deal. The CMA is expected to issue its decision on April 26.

This hearing follows a closed meeting with the EU in which Microsoft Chairman Brad Smith apparently succeeded in arguing that the merger would not be "feasible or realistic" if Call of Duty was not part of the acquisition, Bloomberg reported.< /p>

If the European Commission approves the deal based largely on Microsoft's plan to offer rivals long-term licensing deals, the commission's decision could influence other government agencies looking into the OK.

“Our long-term commitment to grant 100% equal access to Call of Duty to Sony, Steam, Nvidia and others preserves the benefits of the agreement for gamers and developers and increases competition in the marketplace” , a Microsoft spokesperson told Reuters.

The UK is not the only body still unconvinced by Microsoft's proposed solution that licensing deals will solve anti-competitive issues. When the U.S. Federal Trade Commission decided to block the deal last December, FTC Competition Bureau Director Holly Vedova warned that Microsoft could not always be trusted to share its the most lucrative titles with its rivals. "Microsoft has already shown that it can and will withhold content from its gaming rivals," Vedova wrote in an FTC complaint.

An Activision spokesperson told Ars that the merger would help the company continue to create cross-platform games that can compete in a "growing competitor-dominated industry." The Activision spokesperson also said that the solutions presented by Microsoft "are legally binding, and beyond...