37 Countries Have Now Approved Microsoft’s Deal To Buy Activision Blizzard

Microsoft’s proposed deal to acquire Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion has now been cleared in yet another country. China’s State Administration for Market Regulation has given the green light to the buyout, becoming the 37th country around the world to sign off.

“China’s unconditional clearance of our acquisition of Activision Blizzard follows clearance decisions from jurisdictions such as the European Union and Japan, bringing the total to 37 countries representing more than two billion people,” Microsoft said in a statement to Tom Warren of The Verge. “The acquisition combined with our recent commitments to the European Commission will empower consumers worldwide to play more games on more devices.”

“We’re glad to see China join dozens of other major countries in welcoming more competition in the gaming industry. SAMR has unconditionally approved our merger with Microsoft, using facts and data to reach the correct conclusion. We are committed to the Chinese market, with many of our amazing players and employees based there, and we look forward to bringing them new choices and benefits as part of this deal,” a company spokesperson told GameSpot.

Earlier this May The European Union cleared the deal, a move that was expected. What Microsoft was not expecting, though, was how the UK’s Competition & Markets Authority blocked the buyout over concerns around the cloud gaming market.

Microsoft and Activision Blizzard are appealing that decision, and Activision Blizzard has hired the lawyer who represented the Queen and Princess Diana.

Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer has said the company does not need to get Activision Blizzard to deliver on its ambitions in the gaming space, but doing so would speed up those plans.

Other places that have approved Microsoft’s deal include the aforementioned Japan and EU, as well as Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Serbia, and South Africa, among others. In addition to the appeals process in the UK, Microsoft still needs to get approval in the US from the Federal Trade Commission. A hearing is set for early August 2023.

The $68.7 billion that Microsoft is proposing to pay for Activision Blizzard represents the biggest-ever acquisition in gaming history and among the largest in any business. Microsoft’s biggest acquisition ever was LinkedIn, which it acquired in 2016 for $26.2 billion. The Activision Blizzard deal is 2.5x bigger than that.