The FTC is trying again to break the deal between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is trying again to block the purchase of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft. It is reported that department employees presented new arguments against the merger before the panel of judges of the Court of Appeal.

Thus, the FTC believes that previous meetings focused primarily on the harm that the deal could cause to competition in the market, and not on how Microsoft could abuse the exclusivity of its products. The department cited Starfield as an example: a game published by Bethesda (previously purchased by Microsoft) was released only on PC and Xbox — only on the company’s platforms. This practice, according to FTC staff, causes significant harm to competitors in the video game market.

Microsoft disagreed with the FTC’s arguments, saying that the Court of Appeal had already assessed the deal and did not find any violations. However, the FTC itself, apparently, will not stop such a statement.