Rich Polk/Getty Images Entertainment The UK antitrust watchdog’s review of Microsoft’s (NASDAQ:MSFT) planned $69 billion takeover of Activision (NASDAQ:ATVI) was extended to late April from early March. The UK Competition and Markets Authority’s review has been extended to April 26 from March 1, according to a statement from the antitrust authority. The CMA added that it “aims to complete the inquiry as soon as possible and in advance of this date.” The UK’S CMA in September confirmed it was taking a deeper look at the Activision deal after Microsoft failed to assuage concerns about potential anticompetitive effects. The UK extended review comes after the U.S. Federal Trade Commission last month sued to block the $69B acquisition – the biggest regulatory threat to Microsoft in 20 years – saying the deal would let Microsoft suppress competition for its Xbox videogame consoles and its subscription gaming business. The FTC has set a hearing on its attempt to block the Activision (ATVI) deal before an administrative law judge in August. The European Commission reportedly sent out a lengthy ~90 page questionnaire to market participants last month asking about potential measures Microsoft (MSFT) may take to keep Activision Blizzard’s (ATVI) games exclusive to MSFT and its Xbox platform.
