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Microsoft / Activision Deal Approval Watch |OT| (MS/ABK close)

Do you believe the deal will be approved?

  • Yes, will be approved without changes.

    Votes: 221 24.9%

  • Yes, will be approved but with structural changes to ABK.

    Votes: 102 11.5%

  • Yes, will be approved but only with behavioral concessions.

    Votes: 262 29.6%

  • No, will not be approved.

    Votes: 301 34.0%
  • Total voters
    886
  • Poll closed .
Status
Not open for further replies.
adamsapple

adamsapple

Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
DeepEnigma said:
This isn't over yet because that one non sourced post.

This will go to court and all other things like "theoretical" will come to be as well. You guys are getting way ahead of yourselves with play by play noise in the ether. We've been down this road before, why do we still repeat the hottake absolutes?
Click to expand...

Anyone whose making absolute hot takes on either side is an idiot.

This is an ongoing process and won't be ending any time soon. But today's revelation does put some of FTC's statements from yesterday in a very different light.
 
S

StealthGoblin

Banned
intheinbetween said:
How is Sony getting date parity (on Day 1) with Game Pass for CoD on PS+ Extra, who will decide the amount Sony should be paying, or are you implying MS shoud do it for free? and what about exclusive content, does it also have to be available on day 1 for PS platforms? Honestly, that concession doesn't make any sense.
Click to expand...
I don’t know, but Microsoft giving COD away for ‘free’ is actually Sony’s biggest issue now that Microsoft has very publicly committed to keeping the franchise on PlayStation systems.

It’s also any sub service or future sub services biggest issue too as it would make GamePass unassailable.
 
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adamsapple

adamsapple

Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
Mlex is a paywalled website, I'll message Idas for a direct link if it was an older article that has been updated with this info.

Or we can wait till sources like Bloomberg / Verge pick this up shortly.
 
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DeepEnigma

DeepEnigma

Gold Member
feynoob said:
The website is private.

Regulatory News & Reports

Market insight & analysis on regulatory risk for law firms, corporations, hedge funds
mlexmarketinsight.com mlexmarketinsight.com

It's hard to get info, unless you are signed up.
Click to expand...
Of course it is. Will wait for a direct statement by the CMA/EU.

Something tells me some "chairman" would not want to jeopardize any lawsuits by speaking out of term. But we shall see.
 
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adamsapple

adamsapple

Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
We gotta wait for daddy schrier to pay the paywall and report on it after the round of Fifa Worldcup today :messenger_grinning_sweat:
 
N

NickFire

Member
feynoob said:
The website is private.
[/URL]

It's hard to get info, unless you are signed up.
Click to expand...
Well, then get off your butt and sign up!! :messenger_grinning_smiling:

JK. I'm just wondering if this will be the 3rd "reliable report" I have heard in 3 or 4 days that was fake. First Judge was signing with the Giants. Then Bogaerts was re-signing with the Red Sox. But Judge is still a Yankee, and Red Sox lost yet another homegrown talent. sucks.
 
feynoob

feynoob

Member
NickFire said:
Well, then get off your butt and sign up!! :messenger_grinning_smiling:

JK. I'm just wondering if this will be the 3rd "reliable report" I have heard in 3 or 4 days that was fake. First Judge was signing with the Giants. Then Bogaerts was re-signing with the Red Sox. But Judge is still a Yankee, and Red Sox lost yet another homegrown talent. sucks.
Click to expand...
Some reports just use our emotion too much.

Last year, we were so close to sign a good striker, but at the end of the day, he signed up for another team. It was heartbreaking for our team, and cost us a prestige tournament, because we couldn't sign another striker.
 
DeepEnigma

DeepEnigma

Gold Member
NickFire said:
Well, then get off your butt and sign up!! :messenger_grinning_smiling:

JK. I'm just wondering if this will be the 3rd "reliable report" I have heard in 3 or 4 days that was fake. First Judge was signing with the Giants. Then Bogaerts was re-signing with the Red Sox. But Judge is still a Yankee, and Red Sox lost yet another homegrown talent. sucks.
Click to expand...
The Red Sox GM needs to be shown the door. Have not been a fan of this guy, at all.
 
DeepEnigma

DeepEnigma

Gold Member
adamsapple said:
Click to expand...

Waiting for them to have Pachter back on, the guy who represents some of the hedge funds that want it to go through to cash out of the stock, for his "neutral opinion." Throw in a Cramer while we're at it as well. She keeps stuttering too much while trying to gather "her thoughts" while rocking back and forth. (Yes I watch a lot of EWU stuff on YouTube ;))
 
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feynoob

feynoob

Member
Ass of Can Whooping said:
No, they're right. You don't even need to take the FTCs word on it. It's in the document for everyone to see
Click to expand...
This is FTC words.
In a complaint issued today, the FTC pointed to Microsoft’s record of acquiring and using valuable gaming content to suppress competition from rival consoles, including its acquisition of ZeniMax, parent company of Bethesda Softworks (a well-known game developer). Microsoft decided to make several of Bethesda's titles including Starfield and Redfall Microsoft exclusives despite assurances it had given to European antitrust authorities that it had no incentive to withhold games from rival consoles.
Click to expand...

This is EU words.

The Notifying Party submits that Microsoft has strong incentives to continue making ZeniMax games available for rival consoles (and their related storefronts).105
Click to expand...
The Notifying Party explains that the profitability of a strategy to make ZeniMax games exclusive to the Xbox console would depend on a trade-off between: (i) the value of attracting new players to the Xbox ecosystem; and (ii) the lost income from the sale of ZeniMax games for rival consoles (through the related storefronts). In this regard, the Notifying Party forecasts that a significant share of ZeniMax games sales will occur on rival consoles over the life cycle of the newly released console generation.106 Based on such a trade-off, the Notifying Party submits that a hypothetical console exclusivity strategy would be profitable only if it led to an increase in the number of Xbox users [forecast million] over the next five years, corresponding to an increase in Xbox shipments [forecast percentage] above the forecast level.107
Click to expand...
In the Notifying Party’s view, it is implausible that Microsoft would achieve such results. Firstly, the Notifying Party considers that such a strategy is likely to be successful if service differentiation is weak and the content at issue is extremely valuable.108 However, rival consoles are significantly differentiated, and have accumulated brand loyalty.
Click to expand...
Secondly, a high switching rate by players is implausible due to the considerable switching costs between consoles, and the relative value of ZeniMax games compared to the gaming landscape
Click to expand...
(113) [Microsoft’s strategy regarding ZeniMax games].114 (114) Therefore, according to the Notifying Party, Microsoft would not have the incentive to cease or limit making ZeniMax games available for purchase on rival consoles
Click to expand...
The combined entity’s incentive to foreclose rival console game distributors depends on the balance between: (i) the losses from not distributing ZeniMax games broadly on other consoles; and (ii) the higher profits obtained from the increased sales of Xbox consoles (and the related games and services) to new end-users interested in playing ZeniMax games. In light of this trade-off, the Commission concludes that the combined entity would not have the incentive to engage in an input foreclosure strategy by refusing to make ZeniMax games available on rival consoles or degrading the terms under which these games are made available.
Click to expand...
The combined entity’s incentive to foreclose rival console game distributors depends on the balance between: (i) the losses from not distributing ZeniMax games broadly on other consoles; and (ii) the higher profits obtained from the increased sales of Xbox consoles (and the related games and services) to new end-users interested in playing ZeniMax games. In light of this trade-off, the Commission concludes that the combined entity would not have the incentive to engage in an input foreclosure strategy by refusing to make ZeniMax games available on rival consoles or degrading the terms under which these games are made available.
Click to expand...
 
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Bitmap Frogs

Bitmap Frogs

Mr. Community
Honestly, given what we've learned about microsoft not fulfilling agreements regarding zenimax acquisition, we can all foresee that the cma/EU will just simply say no and at that point whatever happens to the FTC suit is irrelevant.

Without actiblizz IP gamepass will never be the netflix of gaming and at that point microsoft ambitions for "one subscripstion to rule them all" will sink. And then what?
 
adamsapple

adamsapple

Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
Idas was kind enough to add pictures of the entire article, which is locked behind a paywall as expected.


www.resetera.com

The Microsoft / Activision Blizzard acquisition |OT| Antitrust Simulator (completed; discussing post-merger issues) OT

MLex emailed the European Commission about the FTC accusation and they provided a very interesting answer: I can’t share the link yet because it’s behind a subscription service (they usually share part of the content a few days later here). I deleted the images because the same info can be...
www.resetera.com www.resetera.com
 
Ass of Can Whooping

Ass of Can Whooping

Gold Member
feynoob said:
This is FTC words.


This is EU words.
Click to expand...

You didn't even read it did you

The FTC

despite assurances it had given to European antitrust authorities that it had no incentive to withhold games from rival consoles.
Click to expand...

The EU

Therefore, according to the Notifying Party, Microsoft would not have the incentive to cease or limit making ZeniMax games available for purchase on rival consoles
Click to expand...
 
M1chl

M1chl

Currently Gif and Meme Champion
feynoob said:
This is FTC words.


This is EU words.
Click to expand...
Yeah well this is bad. I can see EU blocking, if they are not bribed enough

We are currently leading EU and we are at corruption as good as some African countries.
 
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feynoob

feynoob

Member
ibb.co

B7-B195-CD-3-D9-F-43-BF-8-FC8-E582-F265355-B

Image B7-B195-CD-3-D9-F-43-BF-8-FC8-E582-F265355-B hosted in ImgBB
ibb.co ibb.co
ibb.co

89-AB7629-5-F91-4-A57-B0-D1-31178-AF654-CE

Image 89-AB7629-5-F91-4-A57-B0-D1-31178-AF654-CE hosted in ImgBB
ibb.co ibb.co
ibb.co

599-B296-C-4439-449-B-B1-BD-6-FF4605-CCF08

Image 599-B296-C-4439-449-B-B1-BD-6-FF4605-CCF08 hosted in ImgBB
ibb.co ibb.co
ibb.co

877-EFF25-DD5-B-4395-AFA2-C57-D97-A72-B0-A

Image 877-EFF25-DD5-B-4395-AFA2-C57-D97-A72-B0-A hosted in ImgBB
ibb.co ibb.co
ibb.co

32-A8-DA53-D906-464-E-A999-A6-C74761-A508

Image 32-A8-DA53-D906-464-E-A999-A6-C74761-A508 hosted in ImgBB
ibb.co ibb.co
ibb.co

320-DB51-B-173-C-479-A-95-BC-4-BC822-EB9825

Image 320-DB51-B-173-C-479-A-95-BC-4-BC822-EB9825 hosted in ImgBB
ibb.co ibb.co
ibb.co

A33-EFB04-06-F2-41-B1-8-CB6-046-D3-ED297-BA

Image A33-EFB04-06-F2-41-B1-8-CB6-046-D3-ED297-BA hosted in ImgBB
ibb.co ibb.co
ibb.co

29-D7136-D-BC57-4129-AF89-18-B7-AF2-DEA19

Image 29-D7136-D-BC57-4129-AF89-18-B7-AF2-DEA19 hosted in ImgBB
ibb.co ibb.co
 
PaintTinJr

PaintTinJr

Member
NickFire said:
I can't find it. Everything I have found so far sources a single post at the other place. And that post was not sourced either (followed link in an article to it).

Maybe its true, maybe its not. But really sad to see people running quotes without sourcing.
Click to expand...
Even if it is true the quotes don't contradict the FTC's point about MSFT saying one thing publicly to reassure and then doing the exact opposite. Starfield went from being possibly a paid PlayStation exclusive or multi-plat to being a Series Console Exclusive after the deal closed. And the FTC doesn't suggest the games that were made console exclusive were inputs that could foreclose the competition - that is the EU clarifying that point of the power of the Zenimax catalogue.

The FTC's point is that MSFT said one thing and did another with "valuable gaming content to suppress competition from rival consoles". It didn't need to be in a contract or a big enough input to foreclose competition, it just needs to be true to demonstrate they can't be trusted to buy Activision and act appropriately - will be the FTC's argument.
 
adamsapple

adamsapple

Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
Ass of Can Whooping said:
You didn't even read it did you

The FTC



The EU
Click to expand...


The absence of competition concerns "did not rely on any statements made by Microsoft about the future distribution strategy concerning ZeniMax's games," said the commission, which itself has opened an in-depth probe into the Activision Blizzard deal and appears keen to clarify what happened in the previous acquisition.
 
bxrz

bxrz

Member
Pelta88 said:
Can we get a source to the MLEX assertions?

Someone saying that they emailed and got significant info from an EU commissioner, needs way more verification than some random on resetera aka idos or whatever his name is lol
Click to expand...
He put screenshots of the MLEX article

www.resetera.com

The Microsoft / Activision Blizzard acquisition |OT| Antitrust Simulator (completed; discussing post-merger issues) OT

Wasn't it Satyas idea? At least thats what I read. I don't think anyone will be in trouble, both have made so much money for Microsoft, at the very worst they will lose a massive bonus or something. Granted, I dont have insight into the political machinations of the company so maybe I am ultra...
www.resetera.com www.resetera.com
 
Ass of Can Whooping

Ass of Can Whooping

Gold Member
adamsapple said:
The absence of competition concerns "did not rely on any statements made by Microsoft about the future distribution strategy concerning ZeniMax's games," said the commission, which itself has opened an in-depth probe into the Activision Blizzard deal and appears keen to clarify what happened in the previous acquisition.
Click to expand...

Apple, the writing is right there in black and white. Yes, microsoft made assurances. Putting a blindfold on doesn't change it
 
Ass of Can Whooping

Ass of Can Whooping

Gold Member
Punished Miku said:
They're explicitly saying that their assurances were not a factor in their decision. They're trying to explain as clear as possible for dumb people that they decided the case based on other metrics, not testimony.
Click to expand...

I know, and it's still an irrelevent point. Just because it wasn't a factor in their decision doesn't change the the fact that yes, MS still made these assurances
 
N

NickFire

Member
feynoob said:
This is FTC words.


This is EU words.
Click to expand...
If those are the actual EU words than the FTC just boxed them into a corner IMO. In particular:

"In light of this trade-off, the Commission concludes that the combined entity would not have the incentive to engage in an input foreclosure strategy by refusing to make ZeniMax games available on rival consoles or degrading the terms under which these games are made available."

That conclusion literally says the Commission concluded MS would not have the incentive to do what MS announced, like, 1 or 2 months later. That would turn today's statement, if it is real, into a "MS did not lie, we fooled ourselves" response to the FTC.
 
feynoob

feynoob

Member
NickFire said:
If those are the actual EU words than the FTC just boxed them into a corner IMO. In particular:

"In light of this trade-off, the Commission concludes that the combined entity would not have the incentive to engage in an input foreclosure strategy by refusing to make ZeniMax games available on rival consoles or degrading the terms under which these games are made available."

That conclusion literally says the Commission concluded MS would not have the incentive to do what MS announced, like, 1 or 2 months later. That would turn today's statement, if it is real, into a "MS did not lie, we fooled ourselves" response to the FTC.
Click to expand...
EU states current Zenimax games, and the 2 contractual agreement.

They arent talking about zenimax future games.

MS cant pull zenimax games away from PS, or degregade existing games like elderscrolls online.
 
adamsapple

adamsapple

Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
Ass of Can Whooping said:
Again, reading is hard. Did the FTC claim the EU relied on those statements or that Microsoft made these assurances
Click to expand...

Anyone reading the bolded part in a vacuum will assume one of the biggest reasons for FTC's lawsuit is MS supposedly recanting on assurances they made to EU.

In a complaint issued today, the FTC pointed to Microsoft’s record of acquiring and using valuable gaming content to suppress competition from rival consoles, including its acquisition of ZeniMax, parent company of Bethesda Softworks (a well-known game developer). Microsoft decided to make several of Bethesda's titles including Starfield and Redfall Microsoft exclusives despite assurances it had given to European antitrust authorities that it had no incentive to withhold games from rival consoles.
Click to expand...


Waiting for another "Reading is hard" type reply. :rolleyes:
 
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SEGAvangelist

SEGAvangelist

Member
R3claimer117 said:
Microsoft didn't mislead EU over ZeniMax deal, watchdog says in response to US concerns

Microsoft didn't make any "commitments" to EU regulators not to release Xbox-exclusive content following its takeover of ZeniMax Media, the European Commission has said.

US enforcers yesterday suggested that the US tech giant had misled the regulator in 2021 and cited that as a reason to challenge its proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard.

"The commission cleared the Microsoft/ZeniMax transaction unconditionally as it concluded that the transaction would not raise competition concerns," the EU watchdog said in an emailed statement.

The absence of competition concerns "did not rely on any statements made by Microsoft about the future distribution strategy concerning ZeniMax's games," said the commission, which itself has opened an in-depth probe into the Activision Blizzard deal and appears keen to clarify what happened in the previous acquisition.

The EU agency found that even if Microsoft were to restrict access to ZeniMax titles, it wouldn't have a significant impact on competition because rivals wouldn't be denied access to an "essential input," and other consoles would still have a "large array" of attractive content.

Funny sounds like the EC is calling the FTC out for lying and basically killing their argument for court.
Click to expand...
Wow. This is really embarrassing for the FTC.
 
ReBurn

ReBurn

Gold Member
DeepEnigma said:
Hoping to get on the MS dream team payroll of lawyers, me thinks.
Click to expand...
Probably more lucrative getting the constant stream of YouTube superchats. I read somewhere that one YouTube lawyer make 7 figures from paid chat messages just trash talking during the Heard/Depp trial.
 
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