Microsoft to complete the acquisition of Activision Blizzard in a few days, according to report

In January 2022, Microsoft announced its intentions to buy Activision Blizzard. After nearly 2 years of struggles with regulators and various controversies, it appears that the deal will finally be completed very soon.

At least so says a recent report that includes testimony from people familiar with the matter. According to the details, Microsoft already has a date picked out to announce the closing of the acquisition. What's interesting is that it would be as soon as next week.

Microsoft could complete the purchase of Activision next week

Thanks to Tom Warren, journalist of The Verge, we know that Microsoft possibly finalizes the purchase of Activision Blizzard in a few days. According to sources, the company is considering making the announcement next Friday, October 13.

However, there is something important to mention: the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has not yet given its final verdict on the deal. Once Microsoft restructured the purchase and involved Ubisoft, the regulator started gathering information on the acquisition from third parties.

In fact, today is the last day to complete this process. Subsequently, the CMA has until October 18 to make its decision known. Previously, the regulator blocked the deal due to cloud gaming issues.

On the other hand, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is still not giving up and will use a last resort to try to block the purchase.

According to the recent report, Microsoft and Activision Blizzard extended the deadline to finalize their deal to just October 18. The interesting thing is that, if possible, they will try to close the deal next week.

So, in a matter of days we could have the official announcement that Activision Blizzard's franchises, including Call of Duty, are going to Xbox. This would put an end to a long process that generated all kinds of opinions over the course of 1 year and 8 months.