Microsoft-Activision Deal: FTC Official Withdraws

FTC official withdrew the agency's case against Microsoft's US$69 billion acquisition of Activision

Microsoft-Activision Deal: On Thursday, a U.S. Federal Trade Commission official withdrew the agency's case against Microsoft's US$69 billion acquisition of Activision, which was set to trial on August 2 before an FTC administrative law judge. The agency has been pursuing a two-pronged attack against the proposed transaction. One was in district court, which refused last week to slap a preliminary injunction on the proposed transaction. An appeals court also turned down a request for the deal to be paused.

The second was before an FTC administrative law judge, where the deal was set to go to trial on Aug. 2. It was this attack that the agency put on hold on Thursday, in an order made by FTC Secretary April Tabor.

"The district court had a full opportunity to consider the FTC's claims and found that the Commission was unlikely to succeed on the merits of those claims for multiple, independently sufficient reasons," the companies said in their motion.

In other news, Britain's antitrust regulator is waiting for Microsoft to submit a modified deal structure to buy "Call of Duty" maker Activision Blizzard, its boss Sarah Cardell said on Thursday.

"We understand from Microsoft that they would like to propose to us to restructure the deal, potentially re-notifying that deal, to address our competition concerns," she told Sky News. "If they do that, we will consider those restructured proposals carefully."