The UK's regulator delayed plans to publish its final report due to the "scope and complexity of the investigation."
The UK's antitrust regulator Competition and Markets Authority has extended the inquiry period of its in-depth second-phase investigation into Microsoft's proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
In October, the UK's watchdog which started investigating the deal in July 2022 aiming to look into whether it could hurt market competition and lead to a worse offer for consumers announced that it was extending the investigation into phase 2. Among the CMA's concerns was the impact the acquisition could have on PlayStation's ability to compete in the market.
At the time, the regulator set a deadline of March 1, 2023 to publish its final report and decision on the Microsoft/Activision merger.
Now, the CMA revealed that it decided to extend the inquiry period by eight weeks saying that "there are special reasons [...] why the final report cannot be prepared and published within the reference period."
"In taking this decision, the Inquiry Group had regard to the scope and complexity of the investigation and the need to consider a large volume of evidence as well as main party and third party submissions, the necessity to allow sufficient time to take full and proper account of comments that will be received in response to the Inquiry Group’s provisional findings in due course and to reach a fully reasoned final decision in the statutory timeframe," the inquiry group chair Martin Coleman explained.
The deadline for the CMA's final report is now set for April 26, 2023, however, the CMA noted that it "aims to complete the inquiry as soon as possible and in advance of this date."
You can find the CMA's notice of extension here. Also, don't forget to join our 80 Level Talent platform, our Reddit page, and our Telegram channel, follow us on Instagram and Twitter, where we share breakdowns, the latest news, awesome artworks, and more.