Remember that lawsuit that was filed by a group of “gamers” last year? Well, it has recently concluded with a dismissal by Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley. The grounds behind the dismissal state that the complaint made by the plaintiffs can not plausibly allege that the current Activision Blizzard deal will create a reasonable probability of anticompetitive effects in any relevant market. As such, Microsoft’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit was pushed back earlier this week.
The lawsuit was originally filed by ten people who stated that the planned $69 billion deal would give the company “an unrivaled position” in the gaming industry. As such, the group of gamers wants to block the planned merger. The antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft was filed in San Francisco. It was led by a group claiming to have a long history of playing Actiblizz titles across different platforms.
Judge Corley was not amused by the plaintiff’s complaint, asking the complaint holders why Microsoft holding Call of Duty games exclusive to its titles would result in fewer games being sold. She also asked about what in the console market or PC games market and Microsoft’s position in those markets would make it plausible that there is a probability Microsoft would take such steps.
This wasn’t Corley’s only issue with this lawsuit, either. Another aspect of the plaintiff’s complaint that was scrutinized was the allegation that the merger between Activision Blizzard and Microsoft would lead to a lesser gaming industry that would be less creative and far more anti-consumer than before. Corley stated that the claim was insufficient, adding that the plaintiffs failed to explain why and how any of this would be true.
Still, a few things have been conceded in terms of the arguments by the Plaintiffs against Microsoft. For example, the Plaintiffs called Microsoft out regarding their past behavior when it comes to failing to keep their promises to regulators. Back when the Bethesda deal was going on, Microsoft told the European Commission that they wouldn’t have any incentive to limit Zenimax’s games to Microsoft platforms. Fast forward to today, and we have not one but two exclusive games that will be released as exclusive to Xbox. However, that claim was recently questioned by new allegations that supported Microsoft regarding the Zenimax deal.
While Corley conceded that Microsoft doesn’t always tell the truth regarding their public statements, it isn’t enough of an argument to prove a legal case. She added that while the possibility of Microsoft making Activision’s catalog (fully or partially) exclusive exists, the plaintiffs didn’t make arguments that make it plausible that Microsoft is reasonably likely to do so.
So, what’s next? Well, the gamers that made the lawsuit happen to begin with aren’t out of the game yet, as the plaintiffs still have 20 days to make a new case. As for Microsoft, that company is still facing multiple regulatory commissions to make the Activision Blizzard merger happen, so stay tuned for more developments regarding this case.
