Activision CEO Bobby Kotick has said that he expects an “accelerated” UK appeal process following the CMA’s decision to block Microsoft’s proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
Microsoft immediately issued its own statement on the decision saying it would appeal, and Kotick also offered his own words of disappointment over the CMA’s actions. Furthermore, Microsoft President Brad Smith later told the BBC that the decision was ‘bad for Britain.’
Now, Kotick has said that Activision and Microsoft are expecting an “accelerated result” in regards to the appeal process.
I think we and Microsoft and our barristers, who are exceptionally experienced at judicial review, think that there’s a way to accelerate the process, and that the conclusions were so flawed, that we should be able to get an accelerated result.
Whether or not the case can be wrapped up before the current merger agreement expires on July 18 — after which Activision Blizzard could walk away with a $3 billion termination fee — remains to be seen.
I can’t tell you what the timing will be yet, because we haven’t filed our appeals briefing, but we’ll get a lot more detail over the course of the next week and really better understand what the timing will be.
Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard would put some of the biggest gaming franchises under the company’s umbrella, including Call of Duty and Diablo.
[Source – VGC]