Activision Deal Free to Go Ahead as Appeals Court Rejects FTC’s Last-Second “Pause” Request

It seems Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard will likely to go ahead, as a last-second request to delay the proceedings has been rejected by a federal appeals court. Earlier this week, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s attempt to block the Activision Blizzard deal before its July 18 deadline was firmly rejected. The FTC has since filed an appeal, which will take some time to work its way through the legal system. In the meantime, the FTC filed an emergency motion with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to block the deal before the deadlines come due. Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley, who was the one who ruled in Microsoft’s favor earlier this week, already rejected a similar emergency motion.

Microsoft responded to the FTC’s emergency motion requestion in no uncertain terms, saying “the FTC’s claimed emergency is entirely of its own creation." It seems Ninth Circuit Court agrees, as they officially rejected the FTC’s request for “injunctive relief” as of late Friday.

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has denied FTC's request for injunctive relief.

Microsoft can close the ABK deal at midnight tonight PT depending on what is going on in the UK. https://t.co/1HRsxy7bN2 pic.twitter.com/g3pJNjOUqc

— William D'Angelo (@TrunksWD) July 14, 2023

This means that Microsoft is now free to close the Activision Blizzard deal, with the FTC unlikely to be able to throw any more roadblocks in their way. If Microsoft can not close the deal by July 18 they may have to pay Activision a $3 billion “breakup fee.” Of course, there are still some legal hurdles to pass, as they still have to agree to certain additional modifications to get the deal past the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority. Microsoft will still face further FTC hearings in August, but considering the drubbing they’ve already taken in court, the case doesn’t look good.

While the deadline for the Activision Blizzard deal is July 18, Microsoft can actually close the deal at midnight tonight, following the expiration of a temporary restraining order handed down by Judge Corley. That said, the deal isn’t likely to close until next Monday or Tuesday.

Of course, the legal system works in strange ways, so this isn’t over until it’s over. That said, it seems like Microsoft is going to make this deal happen right under the wire. You can keep up with the latest happenings in the Activision Blizzard acquisition saga here.

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