What you need to know
- Microsoft is trying to purchase Activision-Blizzard for $69 billion dollars.
- To clear the deal cleanly, Microsoft needs the approval of the United States, UK, and European Union.
- The United States and European Union have yet to make final decisions, but the UK CMA opted to block the deal this week.
- In comments to press, Microsoft President Brad Smith called into question the UK's viability as a center for tech investment.
- The UK CMA blocked the deal on the basis of "protecting the cloud gaming market," which has less than 10,000 concurrent users in the UK.
- Update: A spokesperson for UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak says Brad Smith's comments about the UK were "wrong."
