The European Commission has announced that, following its initial investigation into Microsoft’s proposed $69bn acquisition of Activision Blizzard, it will now be opening a more “in-depth” Phase 2 probe to determine the deal’s likely impact on competition.
In a statement on its website, the European Commission said it had made the decision after its preliminary investigation showed Microsoft’s acquisition may “significantly reduce competition on the markets for the distribution of console and PC video games, including multi-game subscription services and/or cloud game streaming services, and for PC operating systems”.
It drew particular attention to its concerns Microsoft has a “potential economic incentive” to prevent competitors from accessing Activision Blizzard’s “high-profile and highly successful games” upon closure of the deal, specifically highlighting the Call of Duty series – something Microsoft has repeatedly insisted it will not do.
The European Commission also expressed concerns these same “high-profile and highly successful games” could be be made exclusive to Microsoft’s multi-game and cloud streaming services to the detriment of similar rival services, and that the deal could potentially also be leveraged to discourage users from buying non-Windows PCs.