Microsoft’s proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard has been blocked by the United Kingdom’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), putting the deal in jeopardy, but the two companies are remaining adamant in their position. Microsoft will be appealing CMA’s decision to the UK Competition Appeals Tribunal, while the company is also continuing to take steps beyond that to cement its argument that the deal, should it be allowed to go through, will not harm competition.
To that end, Microsoft has signed an agreement with cloud gaming platform Nware that will see PC game developer by Xbox studios releasing on the platform for at least the next 10 years. The deal will also cover Activision Blizzard titles “after the acquisition closes”, Microsoft has said in its statement.
Xbox boss Phil Spencer said in a tweet, “We are full speed ahead in our mission to bring players more ways to play their favourite games.”
In recent weeks, Microsoft has also signed similar agreements with Nintendo, Nvidia, Steam, and more, while a similar offer also remains on the table for PlayStation.
Seeing as the potential impact that Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard could have on innovation and competition in the burgeoning cloud gaming market was cited by the CMA as the reason for the deal being blocked, one would imagine Microsoft will be signing several more similar agreements with additional platforms.