EU approves Microsoft's Activision Blizzard deal with added caveats
The Xbox purchase of Activision Blizzard has been such a long and arduous process that we can barely wait for it to be over - not just so we can get a lot of great games on Game Pass, but also so we don't have to hear about it anymore.
This deal has taken video game fans too close for comfort to the legality of purchases of this scale, and it has been a frustrating watch no matter if you side with the business-minded Microsoft or the anti-monopoly opposition.
After the UK Trade Commission rejected the idea of the purchase, it was thought that a major roadblock had been found in the process - but it looks like the deal is back on track.
EU Commission approves Activision Deal
Click to enlargeAfter it was thought that the UK's refusal to accept Xbox's deal with Activision to go through was something of a death knell for it, the EU Commission has approved it.
This serves one hell of an UNO reverse card to the potential purchase and brings us one step closer to Call of Duty, Overwatch 2, and more being Xbox exclusives.
"Our decision represents an important step in this direction, by bringing Activision’s popular games to many more devices and consumers than before thanks to cloud game streaming," says executive VP in charge of competition policy at the European Commission Margrethe Vestager.
"The commitments fully address the competition concerns identified by the Commission and represent a significant improvement for cloud gaming as compared to the current situation."
The EU has some caveats for Xbox
Click to enlargeThere are some conditions to this acceptance of the deal, but it's expected that Xbox will adhere to these in order to see the deal through. After all, they've fought so hard for it so far that it'd be one hell of a wasted opportunity to let it go now.
As reported by The Verge, the EU Commission has allowed the buyout to go ahead under the condition that players get "a free license to consumers in EU countries that would allow them to stream via 'any cloud game streaming services of their choice' all current and future Activision Blizzard PC and console games that they have a license for," as well as giving cloud providers a free license to stream the games in EU markets.
It's a lot to take in for the average keen gamer, but at the very least, it's progress. Please be done soon.
