Microsoft’s Smith to Talk With UK Chancellor About Deal Ban (1)

Microsoft Corp. President Brad Smith will meet with UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt next week to voice his frustration over the shock decision by Britain’s competition regulator to block its $69 billion takeover of Activision Blizzard Inc.

Smith is set to hold talks with Hunt as well as officials from the Competition and Markets Authority, the agency that wielded the April 26 veto, according to people familiar with the discussions, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Microsoft confirmed that Smith will be in London, where he’s giving a “scheduled talk about the potential of AI and the need for thoughtful regulation ...