On July 11, local time, a U.S. federal judge ruled that Microsoft could continue its $69 billion acquisition of video game publisher Activision Blizzard.。

The ruling by San Francisco District Judge Jaqueline Scott Corley said the FTC did not provide evidence to support its claim that the acquisition would hurt competition in the gaming industry.。The deal was previously accused of harming consumers by giving Xbox console maker Microsoft exclusive rights to games including the best-selling Call of Duty.。But Jacqueline said the deal would actually increase access to popular game series such as Call of Duty, as well as other titles released by Activision Blizzard.。

This is a far cry from the claims of those companies that have expressed opposition to the takeover。Among the most vocal opposition is Sony, whose Playstation 5 is a major competitor to Microsoft's Xbox Series X / S.。The company said it was concerned that Microsoft would make popular games such as Call of Duty exclusively available to its consoles。

But critics point to the company's $11 billion acquisition of Zenimax in 2021.。The deal resulted in many popular titles moving entirely to Xbox, including Elder Scrolls and Starfield, which will launch this fall.。

A five-day hearing on the case was held in a San Francisco courtroom at the end of June.。The hearing heard testimony from Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick, both of whom pledged to keep Activision Blizzard's blockbuster game Call of Duty open to players who play the game on consoles that compete with Microsoft's Xbox (especially Sony's PlayStation).。

Another major opponent of the deal is the Federal Trade Commission.。The commission has been trying to cancel the deal because they believe it hurts competition in the market.。Following the ruling, a spokesman for the commission, Douglas Farrar, said antitrust regulators were disappointed with the outcome because the merger posed a clear threat to open competition for cloud games, subscription services and consoles.。And said the next steps will be announced in the coming days to continue efforts to keep competition in place to protect consumers.。

The court asked the FTC to file an appeal by Friday (July 14, local time) if it wants to continue.。

While much of the testimony in the recent trial has focused on Call of Duty, Activision Blizzard also has a number of best-selling titles, such as World of Warcraft, Diablo and the hand-held Candy Crush Saga.。FTC cites concerns about loss of competition in console, subscription and cloud gaming in lawsuit。To address the agency's concerns, Microsoft agreed to license Call of Duty to competitors。Microsoft has promised Call of Duty will be available on Nintendo's Switch console, Nvidia's cloud gaming service and other platforms for at least a decade, but that will depend on the final outcome.。

In a statement after the ruling, Kotek said the merger "will benefit consumers and workers and promote competition, rather than allow entrenched market leaders to continue to dominate our fast-growing industry."。"

The deal, if concluded, would be the largest technology acquisition ever。In light of this, Judge Jacqueline also said in her ruling that the merger merits careful review.。Activision Blizzard posts big rise after US judge ruling。Closing at 90.$99, up 10%。

While the ruling clears the biggest hurdle to the deal, the companies will also face opposition from UK regulators.。

However, following the US judge's ruling, the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and Microsoft said they had jointly applied to suspend the hearing while they looked for ways to resolve their differences so the deal could go ahead.。

The CMA said in a statement that it "stands ready to consider any proposal from Microsoft to restructure the transaction to address the concerns outlined in the merger decision."。

Microsoft President Brad Smith said in a statement that the company is seeking to modify its deal "in a manner acceptable to the CMA," though the company does not share the agency's concerns.。

DA Davidson & Co analyst Franco Granda said: "Microsoft and CMA do seem to be able to reach an agreement in the coming weeks.。"

Notably, Microsoft previously promised to pay Activision Blizzard a $3 billion "breakup fee" if the deal fails to close by July 18.。