Microsoft and Activision have agreed to extend the deal until October 18
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Microsoft and Activision Blizzard on Wednesday agreed to extend the merger agreement until Oct. 18, Activision said in a statement on Wednesday.
Both companies initially agreed to complete the deal by July 18, but regulatory requirements from the US and UK delayed the takeover.
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The extension came as the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority decided to postpone its review of the deal until August 29. Microsoft and Activision are now giving themselves plenty of time to complete the CMA’s assessment.
The CMA initially blocked the transaction in May, citing concerns about the threat to competition in the nascent cloud gaming market.
The UK regulator reversed course and suspended all legal proceedings after an attempt by the Federal Trade Commission to block the deal failed in court.
The CMA said it was “willing to consider any proposals from Microsoft to restructure the transaction” in a way that would satisfy the regulator’s concerns.
This is breaking news that will be updated soon.
