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☆ Microsoft to spend $3.2b in Australia as AI regulation looms
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-23 | by ( Byron Kaye | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SYDNEY, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Microsoft (MSFT.O) said it will spend A$5 billion ($3.2 billion) expanding its artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud computing abilities in Australia over two years as part of a wide-ranging effort that includes skills training and cyber security. The U.S. tech giant said it would raise its computing capacity in Australia by 250%, enabling the world's No. "This is a major investment in the skills and workers of the future," Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in a statement issued by Microsoft. A view shows a Microsoft logo at Microsoft offices in Issy-les-Moulineaux near Paris, France, January 25, 2023. It said it would expand its data centre footprint in Australia from 20 sites to 29.

Persons: OpenAI, Anthony Albanese, Gonzalo Fuentes, Brad Smith, Steven Worrall, Byron Kaye, Gerry Doyle Organizations: SYDNEY, Microsoft, Australian Signals Directorate, REUTERS, Australia, Thomson Locations: Australia, U.S, Issy, Paris, France

The deal was the biggest test of the CMA's global power to take on the tech giants since Britain left the European Union. "The new deal will stop Microsoft from locking up competition in cloud gaming as this market takes off, preserving competitive prices and services for UK cloud gaming customers," it said in a statement. Microsoft logo is seen on a smartphone placed on displayed Activision Blizzard's games characters in this illustration taken January 18, 2022. Activision Blizzard said: "The CMA's official approval is great news for our future with Microsoft, and we look forward to becoming part of the Xbox Team." The European Commission said the new commitments given by Microsoft to the CMA did not interfere with its EU commitments.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Jeremy Hunt, Sarah Cardell, Ben Barringer, Brad Smith, Activision Blizzard, Paul Sandle, Yadarisa Shabong, Aditya Soni, Foo Yun Chee, Varun H, Kate Holton, Sonali Paul, Jane Merriman, Sherry Jacob, Phillips Organizations: CMA, Microsoft, LONDON, Activision Blizzard, Sony, Activision, Competition, Markets Authority, Ubisoft Entertainment, Britain, European Union, PlayStation, U.S . Federal Trade Commission, FTC, REUTERS, British, Finance, Xbox, European Commission, Thomson Locations: Britain, Cheviot, London, Bengaluru, Foo

Microsoft logo is seen on a smartphone placed on displayed Activision Blizzard's games characters in this illustration taken January 18, 2022. The deal was blocked in April by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) which said it could give the U.S. computing giant a stranglehold over the nascent cloud gaming market. The deal was the biggest test of the CMA's global power to take on the tech giants since Britain left the European Union. "The new deal will stop Microsoft from locking up competition in cloud gaming as this market takes off, preserving competitive prices and services for UK cloud gaming customers," it said in a statement. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission opposed the deal but after failing to stop it, the CMA was left standing alone.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Jeremy Hunt, Sarah Cardell, Ben Barringer, Brad Smith, Activision Blizzard, Paul Sandle, Yadarisa, Foo Yun Chee, Varun H, Kate Holton, Sonali Paul, Jane Merriman Organizations: Microsoft, Activision, REUTERS, CMA, LONDON, Activision Blizzard, Competition, Markets Authority, Ubisoft Entertainment, Britain, European Union, PlayStation, Sony, U.S . Federal Trade Commission, FTC, British, Finance, Xbox, European Commission, Thomson Locations: Britain, Cheviot, London, Bengaluru, Foo

☆ Microsoft-Activision Blizzard takeover approved as UK removes final hurdle
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-13 | by ( Michelle Toh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Hong Kong CNN —UK antitrust officials have approved Microsoft’s planned takeover of Activision Blizzard, the maker of “Call of Duty” and other hit games, greenlighting one of the biggest tech deals of all time. The Competition and Markets Authority announced Friday that the merger had been cleared after the companies agreed to give up certain cloud gaming rights, removing the final regulatory hurdle to the deal closing. Microsoft (MSFT) unveiled the deal in early 2022, but it was blocked in April by the UK competition regulator. “The new deal will stop Microsoft from locking up competition in cloud gaming,” the agency said Friday. Alongside “Call of Duty,” it also produces “World of Warcraft” and “Overwatch.”Microsoft, which sells the Xbox gaming console, offers a popular video game subscription service called Xbox Game Pass, as well as a cloud-based video game streaming service.

Persons: “, Tencent, Brad Smith, “ we’re, ” Organizations: Hong Kong CNN —, Activision Blizzard, Markets Authority, CMA, Microsoft, Activision, European Union, Ubisoft Entertainment, Sony, Twitter Locations: Hong Kong

☆ Microsoft-Activision: Ubisoft deal helps win Britain's nod
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Oct 13 (Reuters) - Britain's antitrust regulator on Friday cleared Microsoft's (MSFT.O) acquisition of "Call of Duty" maker Activision Blizzard (ATVI.O) after the restructured deal substantially addressed its earlier concerns. In August, Activision agreed to sell its non-European streaming rights to Ubisoft Entertainment (UBIP.PA) to get the biggest deal yet in video-gaming past Britain's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). "We have now crossed the final regulatory hurdle to close this acquisition, which we believe will benefit players and the gaming industry worldwide," Microsoft President Brad Smith said. The company had in July extended the deadline to close the deal by Oct. 18. Here is a snapshot of key events in the Microsoft-Activision saga:Reporting by Tiyashi Datta, Jaspreet Singh and Yadarisa Shabong in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva, Shinjini Ganguli and Varun H KOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Brad Smith, Tiyashi Datta, Jaspreet Singh, Yadarisa, Anil D'Silva, Shinjini Organizations: Activision, Ubisoft Entertainment, Markets Authority, Microsoft, Thomson Locations: Bengaluru

Plus, it will be “productive for the gaming industry as a whole and healthy for competition in the gaming market,” he said. In the meantime, the U.K. regulator was the last major obstacle to the transaction going through. British regulators had initially blocked the transaction over concerns Microsoft could withhold Activision titles from the cloud gaming market. One factor was the EU’s approval, granted after Microsoft promised to automatically license Activision titles royalty-free to cloud gaming platforms. But the CMA's flip-flopping makes the U.K. regulator look “weak and indecisive,” he said.

Persons: Activision Blizzard, Candy, Overwatch —, Brad Smith, Bobby Kotick, Joshua Chapman, ”, Sarah Cardell, Max von Thun, ” von Thun, Matt O’Brien Organizations: —, Activision, Markets, Microsoft, Xbox, Union, Sony, U.S . Federal Trade Commission, FTC, Ubisoft Entertainment, U.K, PlayStation, European Commission, Open Markets, CMA, AP Locations: Konvoy, U.K, Europe, Providence , Rhode Island

☆ Britain says may clear restructured Microsoft-Activision deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Microsoft logo is seen on a smartphone placed on displayed Activision Blizzard's games characters in this illustration taken January 18, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Sept 22 - Microsoft's (MSFT.O) restructured acquisition of Activision Blizzard (ATVI.O) "opens the door" to the deal being cleared, Britain's antitrust regulator said on Friday. The Ubisoft divestment "substantially addresses previous concerns," the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said in a statement. "While the CMA has identified limited residual concerns with the new deal, Microsoft has put forward remedies which the CMA has provisionally concluded should address these issues," the regulator said. The CMA said there were "residual concerns" that certain provisions in the Ubisoft deal could be circumvented, terminated or not enforced.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Brad Smith, Yadarisa, Paul Sandle, Varun, Jason Neely Organizations: Microsoft, Activision, REUTERS, Activision Blizzard, Ubisoft Entertainment, Ubisoft, Markets Authority, CMA, Thomson Locations: U.S, Bengaluru, London

☆ UK regulator says it may clear Microsoft's new Activision Blizzard takeover offer
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-22 | by ( Ruxandra Iordache | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Microsoft submitted a new proposal to U.K. regulators for the takeover of American game publisher Activision Blizzard after its initial proposal was rejected. LONDON — The U.K.'s competition regulator on Friday said Microsoft 's restructured takeover proposal of Activision Blizzard , submitted in August, "opens the door to the deal being cleared." The U.K. Competition and Markets Authority had blocked the Redmond tech giant's initial $69 billion transaction, first put forward in January 2022, on concerns that it would restrict competition in the nascent cloud gaming sector. Critically, cloud gaming could eliminate the need for costly specialized consoles, allowing players to access the games on PCs, mobile phones and TVs. EU officials were first to clear the deal in May, after Microsoft offered concessions to the tune of royalty-free licenses to cloud gaming platforms to stream Activision games that a buyer has purchased.

Persons: —, Brad Smith, We're, Bobby Kotick Organizations: Microsoft, Activision Blizzard, LONDON, Competition, Markets Authority, Redmond, Activision PC, Activision, Ubisoft Entertainment, CMA, Ubisoft, Netflix, European Union, U.S . Federal Trade Commission Locations: San Francisco

LONDON (AP) — British competition regulators gave preliminary approval Friday to Microsoft’s restructured $69 billion deal to buy video game maker Activision Blizzard, easing a final global hurdle that paves the way for one of the largest tech transactions in history to go through. The updated offer “opens the door to the deal being cleared,” the watchdog said, though there are lingering concerns. “The CMA’s position has been consistent throughout — this merger could only go ahead if competition, innovation and choice in cloud gaming was preserved," CEO Sarah Cardell said. Crucially, it got a thumbs-up from the 27-nation European Union after agreeing to allow users and cloud gaming platforms to stream its titles without paying royalties for 10 years. The CMA then put its original decision on hold and opened a new investigation into the revamped proposal.

Persons: Sarah Cardell, “, Brad Smith, ”, Bobby Kotick Organizations: Microsoft’s, Activision, The, Markets Authority, Microsoft, Union, U.S . Federal Trade Commission, CMA, Ubisoft Entertainment Locations: British, U.S, Britain

☆ Microsoft's $68.7 billion Activision acquisition clears key hurdle after UK regulator provisionally approves deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-22 | by ( Hasan Chowdhury | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The CMA provisionally greenlit Microsoft's acquisition of the "Call of Duty" developer. It comes after a lengthy period in which the deal was threatened because of competition concerns. Get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in business, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley — delivered daily. The CMA will conduct a consultation until October 6, before the acquisition agreement expires on October 18. Activision said in a statement issued to Insider, "The CMA's preliminary approval is great news for our future with Microsoft."

Persons: Activision Blizzard, Sarah Cardell, Brad Smith, We're Organizations: Microsoft, Activision Blizzard, CMA, Service, Activision, Markets, Ubisoft, Cloud Gaming Locations: Wall, Silicon

Microsoft logo is seen on a smartphone placed on displayed Activision Blizzard's games characters in this illustration taken January 18, 2022. "While the CMA has identified limited residual concerns with the new deal, Microsoft has put forward remedies which the CMA has provisionally concluded should address these issues," the regulator said. The European Union waved the deal through in May after accepting Microsoft's commitments to license Activision's games to other platforms, the same remedies that Britain had rejected. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission also opposes the deal, but it has failed in its attempts to stop it. The CMA said there were "residual concerns" around the Ubisoft deal, but Microsoft has offered remedies to ensure the terms of the sale were enforceable by the regulator.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Brad Smith, Sarah Cardell, Sophie Lund, Yates, Hargreaves Lansdown, Yadarisa, Paul Sandle, Varun H, Jason Neely, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Microsoft, Activision, REUTERS, Ubisoft UK's CMA, CMA, Activision Blizzard, Ubisoft Entertainment, Competition, Markets Authority, Ubisoft, Union, U.S . Federal Trade Commission, Thomson Locations: U.S, Britain, Bengaluru, London

☆ UK minister rejects Microsoft criticism of decision to block Activision deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Microsoft logo is seen on a smartphone placed on displayed Activision Blizzard's games characters in this illustration taken January 18, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Sept 19 (Reuters) - British business minister Kemi Badenoch said on Tuesday she did not agree with Microsoft (MSFT.O) President Brad Smith that the Competition and Market Authority's initial decision to block its purchase of videogame maker Activision was bad for Britain. "Call of Duty" maker Activision Blizzard (ATVI.O) has since said it will sell its streaming rights in a fresh attempt to win approval from Britain's anti-trust regulator, the CMA, for its $69 billion sale to Microsoft. "If the CMA is doing something wrong, I think that will become evident through a pattern which is not yet the case." Reporting by Alistair Smout and Muvija M; Editing by Sachin RavikumarOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Kemi Badenoch, Brad Smith, Badenoch, Alistair Smout, Sachin Ravikumar Organizations: Microsoft, Activision, REUTERS, Britain, CMA, Thomson Locations: United States

☆ Musk, Zuckerberg, Gates to join US senators for AI forum
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Microsoft President Brad Smith, Nvidia's chief scientist William Dally, and Professor Woodrow Hartzog wait to testify before a Senate Judiciary Privacy, Technology, and the Law Subcommittee hearing on "Oversight of A.I. : Legislating on Artificial Intelligence" on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., September 12, 2023. Other expected attendees include feature OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Nvidia (NVDA.O) CEO Jensen Huang, Microsoft (MSFT.O) CEO Satya Nadella, IBM (IBM.N) CEO Arvind Krishna, former Microsoft CEO Bill Gates, AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler and Senators Mike Rounds, Martin Heinrich, and Todd Young. Microsoft President Brad Smith told a Senate Judiciary subcommittee on Tuesday Congress should "require safety brakes for AI that controls or manages critical infrastructure." Smith compared AI safeguards to requiring circuit breakers in buildings, school buses having emergency brakes and airplanes having collision avoidance systems.

Persons: Brad Smith, William Dally, Woodrow Hartzog, Leah Millis, Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Sundar Pichai, Chuck Schumer, ChatGPT, Sam Altman, Jensen Huang, Satya Nadella, Arvind Krishna, Bill Gates, Liz Shuler, Mike Rounds, Martin Heinrich, Todd Young, Schumer, Smith, Joe Biden's, David Shepardson, Lincoln Organizations: Privacy, Technology, REUTERS, Capitol Hill, Nvidia, Microsoft, IBM, AFL, Regulators, Google, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, WASHINGTON, Senate's

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The cost of building an artificial intelligence product like ChatGPT can be hard to measure. To keep it cool on hot days, data centers need to pump in water — often to a cooling tower outside its warehouse-sized buildings. The estimate includes indirect water usage that the companies don’t measure — such as to cool power plants that supply the data centers with electricity. It was also thirsty in Iowa, drawing more potable water to its Council Bluffs data centers than anywhere else. Its fourth and fifth data centers are due to open there later this year.

Persons: “, OpenAI, ”, Shaolei Ren, ChatGPT, ” Ren, you’re, Ren, Steve Gaer, Gaer, Brad Smith, ” Smith, —, O'Brien Organizations: DES, Microsoft, Google, University of California, Las, Associated Press, workloads, supercomputing, West, West Des Moines Water Works Locations: DES MOINES, Iowa, Des Moines, Riverside, Oregon, Las Vegas, San Francisco, West Des Moines , Iowa, California, West Des Moines, Arizona, West Des, Providence , Rhode Island

☆ Congress to hold new AI hearings as it works to craft safeguards
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Sept 8 (Reuters) - Congress next week will hold three hearings on artificial intelligence, including one with Microsoft (MSFT.O) President Brad Smith and Nvidia (NVDA.O) chief scientist William Daly as Congress works on legislation to mitigate the dangers of the emerging technology. A Senate Judiciary subcommittee is holding a hearing on Tuesday titled “Oversight of AI: Legislating on Artificial Intelligence." A House Oversight subcommittee will hold a hearing on Thursday that will look at potential risks in federal agency adoption of AI along with the adequacy of safeguards to protect individual privacy and ensure fair treatment. Witnesses include White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Arati Prabhaker along with the Pentagon's chief digital and artificial intelligence officer Craig Martell and Homeland Security Department's Chief Information Officer Eric Hysen. "However, it is critical that before we let the genie out of the bottle we understand the unique risks of inappropriate use of AI by the federal government."

Persons: Brad Smith, William Daly, Richard Blumenthal, Blumenthal, Josh Hawley, Chuck Schumer, Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, Arati Prabhaker, Craig Martell, Eric Hysen, Nancy Mace, Victoria Espinel, Rob Strayer, David Shepardson, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Microsoft, Nvidia, Artificial Intelligence, Republican, U.S, Meta, White, Office of Science, Technology, Homeland Security, BSA, The Software Alliance, Information Technology Industry, Thomson

☆ 2 Senators Propose Bipartisan Framework for A.I. Laws
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( Cecilia Kang | More About Cecilia Kang | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Senator Richard Blumenthal, Democrat of Connecticut, and Senator Josh Hawley, Republican of Missouri, plan to announce a sweeping framework to regulate artificial intelligence, in the latest effort by Congress to catch up with the technology. The lawmakers plan to highlight their proposals in an A.I. hearing on Tuesday, which will feature Brad Smith, Microsoft’s president, and William Dally, the chief scientist for the A.I. Mr. Blumenthal and Mr. Hawley plan to introduce bills from the framework. On Wednesday, top tech executives including Elon Musk, Microsoft’s Satya Nadella and OpenAI’s Sam Altman will meet with the Senate leader, Chuck Schumer, and other lawmakers in a separate closed-door meeting on A.I.

Persons: Richard Blumenthal, Josh Hawley, Brad Smith, William Dally, Blumenthal, Hawley, Elon Musk, Satya Nadella, OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Chuck Schumer Organizations: Nvidia, Mr, Elon Locations: Connecticut, Republican, Missouri

☆ CNBC Daily Open: Despite Monday’s bounce, stocks are still wobbly
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( Yeo Boon Ping | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange during opening bell in New York City on August 21, 2023. This report is from today's CNBC Daily Open, our new, international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. Artificial intelligence, human controlArtificial intelligence must be "subject to human control," Microsoft's president and vice-chairman Brad Smith told CNBC in an exclusive interview. Monetizing Google Maps dataGoogle is planning to license solar and environment data to companies, CNBC has learned.

Persons: Hong, Goldman offloads, Goldman Sachs, Goldman, David Solomon, Brad Smith, Smith Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, CNBC, Nikkei, Creative Planning, United Capital Financial Partners, Google, Tesla Energy, Aurora, Nvidia, Sanlam Investments Locations: New York City, Asia, Pacific

☆ AI needs 'human control' to avoid being weaponized, says Microsoft's president
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( Sheila Chiang | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

"We have to ensure that AI remains subject to human control. Generative AI is a type of artificial intelligence technology that can generate content such as text, images, code and more. AI impact on jobsMeanwhile, the explosive growth of AI has workers worrying that their jobs could be replaced by the technology. A Goldman Sachs report in March said generative AI could impact as many as 300 million jobs around the world. The Microsoft executive pointed out that AI is a tool that supplements human work, and not one that replaces jobs.

Persons: Brad Smith, Smith, it's, we've, CNBC's Martin Soong, We've, Goldman Sachs Organizations: CNBC, Tech, Microsoft Locations: New Delhi

☆ Microsoft's president on fresh bid for Activision Blizzard: 'Up to the regulators' to decide
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( Sheila Chiang | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

watch nowMicrosoft says it "really tried" to take the concerns of U.K. regulators to heart, before launching its fresh bid to take over Activision Blizzard — and it's now up to the regulators to decide whether that path is clear. "I think we need to let the regulators speak for themselves," Microsoft's vice-chairman and president Brad Smith told CNBC in an exclusive interview. Last Tuesday, Microsoft submitted a new proposal to U.K. regulators for the takeover of American game publisher Activision Blizzard after its initial proposal was rejected. Microsoft submitted a new proposal to U.K. regulators for the takeover of American game publisher Activision Blizzard after its initial proposal was rejected. Brad Smith Microsoft's vice-chairman and presidentOn regulatory concerns, Smith said: "We haven't tried to dismiss them.

Persons: it's, Brad Smith, we've, Brad Smith Microsoft's, Smith, haven't, We've, CNBC's Martin Soong Organizations: Microsoft, Activision Blizzard, CNBC, Activision, Markets Authority, Nurphoto, Activision PC, Ubisoft, CMA Locations: New Delhi

☆ AI will advance productivity and fundamental lines of businesses, Microsoft says
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailAI will advance productivity and fundamental lines of businesses, Microsoft saysMicrosoft's vice chairman and president, Brad Smith, says AI will not only advance productivity and make people more effective in their jobs, but also lead to a happier workplace and workforce.

Persons: Brad Smith Organizations: Microsoft

☆ Microsoft says it worked hard to address regulatory concerns over Activision Blizzard deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailMicrosoft says it worked hard to address regulatory concerns over Activision Blizzard dealBrad Smith, president and vice chair of Microsoft, discusses the company's merger agreement with Activision Blizzard. The two companies had originally agreed to complete the transaction by July 18, but regulatory pushback from the U.S. and the U.K. delayed the takeover.

Persons: Brad Smith Organizations: Microsoft, Activision Blizzard Locations: U.S

☆ Microsoft says it will sell Activision streaming rights to Ubisoft to unblock its takeover bid
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Microsoft has restructured its deal to hand Activision cloud gaming rights to rival Ubisoft. Microsoft really wants to get its takeover of Activision Blizzard over the line. The tech giant has substantially restructured its deal to try and appease the UK regulator's concerns that a takeover would hurt competition in cloud gaming. The new deal involves selling Activision cloud-gaming rights for countries outside the European Economic Area to video-game publisher Ubisoft. Microsoft announced its intent to acquire Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion in January 2022, but the deal has been entangled in competition concerns ever since.

Persons: Sarah Cardell, Brad Smith Organizations: Microsoft, Activision, Ubisoft, Morning, Activision Blizzard, Economic Area, Cloud Gaming, European Commission, Markets Authority, CMA Locations: British

☆ Ubisoft shares pop 9% on revised Microsoft-Activision deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( Ashley Capoot | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Yves Guillemot, CEO and co-founder of Ubisoft, speaks at the Ubisoft Forward livestream event in Los Angeles, California, on June 12, 2023. Shares of French game maker Ubisoft popped 9% in Europe trading Tuesday after Microsoft submitted a new deal for the takeover of Activision Blizzard to try and appease wary U.K. regulators. The U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority confirmed it blocked the original $69 billion deal that Microsoft first put forward in January 2022. Instead, these rights will be divested to Ubisoft before Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Ubisoft offers cloud games on services like Amazon Luna and Nvidia 's GeForce Now, which compete with Microsoft's Xbox streaming service.

Persons: Yves Guillemot, Brad Smith, Tom Clancy's, Smith, CNBC's Arjun Kharpal Organizations: Ubisoft, Microsoft, Activision Blizzard, Markets Authority, CMA, Activision Blizzard PC, Activision, Amazon, Nvidia Locations: Los Angeles , California, Europe, U.S

☆ Microsoft submits new Activision Blizzard takeover deal to British regulator after initial block
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( Arjun Kharpal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Dado Ruvic | ReutersMicrosoft on Tuesday submitted a new deal for the takeover of Activision Blizzard, offering a spate of concessions after U.K. regulators rejected its initial proposal. Under the restructured deal, Microsoft will not acquire cloud rights for existing Activision PC and console games, or for new games released by Activision during the next 15 years, the CMA said. Regulators previously argued that Microsoft could also take key Activision games, like Call of Duty, and make them exclusive to Xbox and other Microsoft platforms. To cross that line, Microsoft offered concessions, such as offering royalty-free licenses to cloud gaming platforms to stream Activision games, if a consumer has purchased them. In the U.S., the Federal Trade Commission was fighting a legal battle with Microsoft in an effort to get the Activision takeover scrapped.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Brad Smith Organizations: Activision, Reuters Microsoft, Activision Blizzard, Markets Authority, Microsoft, CMA, Redmond, Activision PC, Ubisoft Entertainment, Ubisoft, Netflix, European Union, Federal Trade Commission Locations: U.S, Europe

Megan Rapinoe reacts to missing during the penalty kick shootout. The US soccer icon announced she would retire at the end of the 2023 National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) season, meaning this could be her final match for the US national team. Rapinoe came on as a second-half substitute against Sweden but failed to score her penalty in the shootout. "She’s going to leave a legacy and we’re going to continue to grow as feminine soccer players and I think it’s great." It was a sentiment echoed by fellow fan Tina Lordanou, who was watching from the same bar.

Persons: Megan Rapinoe, Brad Smith, Rapinoe, I’ve, Gia Díaz, Tina Lordanou Organizations: USSF, Getty, Women’s Soccer League, US, Sweden Locations: New York

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