Activision (NASDAQ:ATVI)
Activision stock climbed 1.7% on the news that an appeal hearing in the UK about the country’s antitrust regulator’s decision to deny the $69 billion Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) purchase is “fairly well.”
A Tuesday’s webcast of a UK meeting revealed that Competition Appeal Tribunal Justice Marcus Smith has scheduled the trial to begin on July 24. According to the live stream, the trial might continue for ten days, but it is more likely to be for less, namely six days.
According to David Faber of CNBC, the judge is pushing the case ahead more quickly than many anticipated. Some of the things he stated regarding the Competition and Markets Authority may be seen favorably for Microsoft.
According to a report on the hearing published by Bloomberg, Microsoft requested that July 17 be set for a four-day hearing. The CMA claimed the timing was too soon and requested that the hearing be moved to late September or October.
The appeal hearing is taking place as the deadline for terminating the deal, which is July 18, draws closer; at that point, the parties can decide whether or not to extend the deal.
On Wednesday of this week, Microsoft officially submitted its appeal to the judgment of the United Kingdom’s antitrust authority to prohibit its proposed purchase of Activision (NASDAQ:ATVI), which would cost $69 billion. Even though several governing bodies, including the European Union, have approved the merger, the CMA’s obstruction is seen as a significant roadblock that may eventually result in the transaction ending.
The antitrust authority in the United Kingdom filed a lawsuit at the end of the previous month to prevent the purchase, citing worries about cloud gaming. In December, the United States Federal Trade Commission sued to prevent Activision stock from entering the $95 per share agreement. The court case is set to begin in August.
The antitrust authority in South Korea gave the merger between ATVI and MSFT the go-light on Tuesday morning after the government agency said that the combination was not expected to have a detrimental effect on South Korea’s domestic gaming sector.
Featured Image: Megapixl
