Microsoft Yet to Have Any ‘Substantive’ Settlement Discussions With FTC Following Lawsuit Over Activision Acquisition

The Microsoft-Activision acquisition saga continues, with the deal’s latest roadblock coming from the United States’ Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

Last month, the FTC created a major headache for Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of the Call of Duty developers, when the former slapped a lawsuit against the Redmond-based tech giants. According to the antitrust regulators, the acquisition would provide an unfair advantage over its competitors, with the addition of Activision and its various gaming franchise to the Xbox gaming lineup.

Despite the lawsuit being filed over a month ago, it seems like Microsoft or the FTC isn’t particularly planning on speeding up the matter. According to Reuters, FTC lawyer James Weingarten recently shared in a telephonic pre-trial hearing that the two parties haven’t had any “substantial” discussions to settle the case yet.

While Microsoft and the FTC have yet to talk it out properly, the former has responded to the latter’s claims about Microsoft’s increased power in the video game industry. In a 37-page document, Microsoft clarified its reasons for acquiring Activision by mentioning the positive things that can come out of this deal.

As mentioned in the Reuters report, in the ensuing court battle between Microsoft and the FTC, the latter will definitely have a hard time convincing the federal judge to block the deal, as Microsoft has made it clear about the company’s willingness to offer concessions. This includes offering the Call of Duty franchise to remain on consoles of its competitors in Nintendo and Sony PlayStation for 10 years.

In the end, the questions regarding the deal will swirl around, until the judge makes a decision following the hearings, which is set to take place in August 2023.