The Ninth Circuit appellate court has denied the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) request for injunctive relief in its case against Microsoft, just two days after the commission filed for the appeal. This comes after a week of court drama between Microsoft and the FTC, as Microsoft aimed to finalize its acquisition of Activision-Blizzard, first announced over a year and a half ago. The presiding judge denied the FTC’s injunction on Tuesday, July 11, and the appellate court has now denied the appeal as well. Microsoft is likely to close the deal soon, possibly as early as Monday, July 17.
Quick Facts
- FTC’s request for injunctive relief against Microsoft has been denied by the Ninth Circuit appellate court.
- Microsoft is likely to close the Activision-Blizzard acquisition deal soon, possibly on July 17.
- Xbox‘s parent company still needs to address concerns with the UK’s regulatory body, the CMA, regarding potential cloud monopolization.
Microsoft still needs to resolve issues with the UK’s regulatory body, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which has concerns about Microsoft’s potential for future cloud monopolization. In an internal memo from Xbox lead Phil Spencer earlier this week, he mentioned that his team is already looking for ways to modify the deal to address the CMA’s concerns in an acceptable manner. It is likely that both parties have been in close contact throughout the week in case the FTC’s appeal was quickly denied.
As the weekend has arrived, it may be best not to expect any further developments on the matter until at least Monday. For gamers, it’s worth noting that Call of Duty will not be available on Xbox Game Pass until at least 2025.
