Microsoft's deal to buy Activision Blizzard had been in the works since January 2023 (see "Activision Blizzard Acquisition Deal"). It was being held up by the U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) who had blocked the merger in April 2023 on grounds that it stifled competition in the cloud gaming sector. The CMA finally gave its approval on October 13, 2023 citing that a concession Microsoft made in August, to transfer the cloud-gaming rights for Activision's current and new games to Ubisoft Entertainment over the course of the next 15 years, would appease their concerns by promoting competition in the space.
"We’re grateful for the CMA’s thorough review and decision today," said Microsoft's Vice Chair and President Brad Smith in a Twitter post. "We have now crossed the final regulatory hurdle to close this acquisition, which we believe will benefit players and the gaming industry worldwide."
With the deal done, Microsoft will soon add Call of Duty, Diablo, Warcraft, World of Warcraft, Candy Crush, Hearthstone, and Overwatch to its ever-expanding library of game titles. Some of the these titles have been recently made into tabletop games, including Call of Duty (see " 'Call of Duty: The Board Game'") and World of Warcraft (see "'Wrath of the Lich' 'Pandemic' Game").
