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July 14 (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Friday rejected the Federal Trade Commission's request that it order Microsoft (MSFT.O) to temporarily hold off on closing its $69 billion purchase of "Call of Duty" maker Activision Blizzard (ATVI.O). The appeals court decision removes one of the few remaining hurdles stopping Xbox maker Microsoft from expanding its gaming business by closing its deal to buy Activision. The FTC had also asked Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley of the U.S. District Court in northern California for a stay but she rejected that request late on Thursday. After July 18, either company will be free to walk away from the deal unless they negotiate an extension. But on Tuesday, Judge Corley ruled the deal was legal under antitrust law and declined the FTC request to slap a preliminary injunction on it to give the FTC time to take it before an internal FTC judge in August.

Persons: Jacqueline Scott Corley, Judge Corley, Diane Bartz, Sandra Maler Organizations: Federal Trade, Microsoft, Activision, FTC, U.S, Markets Authority, Sony Group, Thomson Locations: California, Britain, United States

Still, any outstanding regulatory hurdle makes it more likely that the agreement between Microsoft and Activision will expire on July 18 without the deal having been completed. The FTC's court filing about the appeal gave no details, which will go before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on the West Coast. The FTC may request a stay from the appeals court stopping the deal from closing. When U.S. antitrust agencies lose merger challenges in court, appeals are rare. The agency settled with the companies before the appeals court made a decision.

Persons: We’re, Brad Smith, Jacqueline Scott Corley, Corley, Diane Bartz, Diane Craft Organizations: U.S . Federal Trade Commission, Microsoft, Activision, Microsoft's, Ninth Circuit, FTC, Biden, Markets Authority, Japan's Nintendo, Foods, Oats, Thomson Locations: West Coast, San Francisco

The filing had no details on the appeal, which will go to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on the West Coast. In her 53-page order, Corley said it was not enough for the FTC to argue that "a merger might lessen competition - the FTC must show the merger will probably substantially lessen competition." Legal scholars questioned that standard, saying that the U.S. antitrust law required the FTC to prove the proposed deal "may" harm competition, not that it "will." The deal is Microsoft's biggest ever, and the largest in the videogame industry's history. To address the agency's concerns, Microsoft agreed to license "Call of Duty" to rivals, including a 10-year contract with Nintendo, contingent on the merger closing.

Persons: Jacqueline Scott Corley, Biden, Judge Corley, Corley, Diane Bartz, Muralikumar Anantharaman, Diane Craft Organizations: U.S . Federal Trade Commission, Microsoft, Activision, Ninth Circuit, U.S, FTC, Nintendo, Thomson Locations: West Coast, San Francisco

☆ Microsoft Says It Could Abandon Activision Deal if Judge Delays It
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( Kellen Browning | David Mccabe | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

On Wednesday, it sued Amazon over allegations that the company tricked users into signing up for its Prime subscription service. has had setbacks: Its challenge to Meta’s purchase of a virtual reality start-up fell apart this year after a judge declined to stop the deal from closing. But that court does not have the legal authority to stop the deal. asked the federal court to step in this month, saying it feared Microsoft would try to complete the deal despite the legal challenges. would be a sign that its broader challenge has legs, and could put new pressure on Microsoft and Activision to reconsider the multibillion-dollar corporate marriage.

Persons: Wilkinson, ”, Jim Ryan, Meta, Microsoft’s, Corley’s Organizations: Microsoft, Activision, Nintendo, Nvidia, PlayStation, Sony, Amazon

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