BREAKING: the UK's CMA has provisionally concluded that Microsoft's Activision Blizzard deal

 BREAKING: the UK's CMA has provisionally concluded that Microsoft's Activision Blizzard deal “will not result in a substantial lessening of competition in console gaming services" because Microsoft is unlikely to withhold Call of Duty from PlayStation

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has updated its provisional findings regarding the proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft, stating that the transaction will not result in a substantial lessening of competition in relation to console gaming in the UK. The CMA received significant new evidence indicating that Microsoft's financial incentives to make Activision's games, including Call of Duty, exclusive to its own consoles would be significantly loss-making under any plausible scenario. The CMA's addendum to its provisional findings only relates to competition in the supply of consoles and not cloud gaming services. The CMA's final report is due by 26 April 2023.