Britain’s antitrust regulator has officially approved Microsoft’s (MSFT) $68 billion U.S. acquisition of video game maker Activision Blizzard (ATVI).
The approval from the U.K. Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) removes what was widely seen as the final hurdle to completing the deal. Microsoft is now expected to finalize its purchase of Activision Blizzard by the end of October.
The British regulator said that its concerns over the threat to competition posed by the takeover were resolved by Microsoft offloading the cloud-streaming rights for Activision’s video games.
With clearance from the U.K. Competition and Markets Authority, Microsoft’s Activision acquisition can now be completed despite continuing opposition from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
The FTC has said that it plans to restart an in-house trial against Microsoft over the acquisition, but it doesn’t have the power to block the deal after a federal judge in the U.S. ruled that the deal can proceed.
Microsoft President Brad Smith said on social media platform X that the company had crossed the “final hurdle” to closing the acquisition. Microsoft previously set a deadline of Oct. 18 for completing the takeover of Activision.
With Activision Blizzard, Microsoft brings an experienced team of video game developers inhouse at its Xbox gaming unit and gains control of popular video game franchises such as “Call of Duty,” “World of Warcraft,” and “Candy Crush,” among other titles.
Microsoft’s stock has gained 41% over the last 12 months and currently trades at $331.16 U.S. per share.
