U.S. officials suing to stop Microsoft Corp.’s $69 billion purchase of Activision Blizzard Inc. argue the software giant’s recent acquisition history suggests it’s motivated to rope off blockbuster video games from competitors.
Microsoft routinely distributes its video games across multiple consoles, but with the 2020 purchase of gaming conglomerate ZeniMax Media for $7.5 billion, the company placed an increased emphasis on exclusive, top tier titles.
As the Federal Trade Commission seeks in court to block the Activision merger, the agency pointed to the ZeniMax deal to poke holes in Microsoft’s assertion that the acquisition will be good for the industry and question its intention to make more games available on multiple platforms.
