The Long, Winding Road to a Microsoft-Activision Deal: QuickTake

The biggest-ever deal in video gaming has also been one of the hardest to pull off. Microsoft Corp.’s $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard Inc. finally looks like it may happen, but only after a year and a half of jousting with global regulators concerned by the potential market power of the combined company. The fight isn’t quite over, with the US Federal Trade Commission likely to continue challenging the deal even after it has gone through.

1. Why did regulators oppose a Microsoft-Activision deal?

The FTC sued Microsoft in December 2022, alleging that the acquisition would choke competition ...