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New Zealand Regulator Postpones Microsoft-Activision Blizzard Decision

By  |  January 24, 2023

The New Zealand Commerce Commission has pushed back its deadline for a decision on Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard King from February 3, 2023 (next week’s Friday) to April 28, 2023.

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    This does not tell us anything about what the decision will ultimately be. It appears to me that in the current environment, New Zealand’s antitrust agency prefers to wait and see what will happen in other jurisdictions, particularly with a view to potential remedies such as a ten-year Call of Duty license to Sony.

    Read more: Microsoft Drops Claim Against US FTC In Activision Blizzard Case

    In November, the European Commission extended its deadline to April 11, 2023. The UK Competition & Market Authority’s statutory deadline is April 26, 2023.