As we reported yesterday afternoon, the UK CMA has decided to block the purchase of Activision Blizzard King, which Microsoft says it wants to appeal. Now CEO of Activision Blizzard, Bobby Kotickshared his opinion on the decision and said he is “far from the last word”:
“It’s not the news we wanted, but it’s far from the final word on this deal.
Together with Microsoft, we can and will challenge this decision, and we have already started working to appeal to the UK Competition Appeal Court. We are confident in our case because the facts are on our side: this agreement is good for competition.
The UK is hoping to increase its leadership position in technology, and a Microsoft-Activision combination would do just that. At a time when the fields of machine learning and artificial intelligence are booming, we know the UK market would benefit from Microsoft’s strength in both areas, as well as our ability to use these technologies immediately. On the contrary, if the CMA’s decision is upheld, it would stifle investment, competition and job creation across the UK gambling industry.”
Kotick also states that this deal would ultimately be good for almost everyone involved, as well as the players:
“We will continue to champion our cause as we know this merger will benefit our employees, the entire UK tech workforce and gamers around the world.”