U.K. Blocks Microsoft’s $69 Billion Bid for Activision, a Blow for Tech Deals
New York TimesAPR 2023
This decision doesn't make sense given that cloud gaming makes up a small proportion of the entire video game industry. If the CMA was making an anti-trust argument to protect the UK from video game monopolies, wouldn't it base its decision on the consoles people use to play video games like Xbox and PlayStation?
The video game industry is a dynamic and creative one, and monopolizing an entire industry would diminish that creativity from other game providers. Microsoft didn't offer PC providers other than Windows access to the games, nor did it suggest allowing games other than those in its terms of service to be on its service, which goes directly against market competition. Well-calculated regulation made total sense here.