Subj : Microsoft president Brad Smith softens stance on the CMA, describ
To   : All
From : TechnologyDaily
Date : Wed Jan 03 2024 10:45:05

Microsoft president Brad Smith softens stance on the CMA, describing them as 
fair following Activision Blizzard acquisition

Date:
Wed, 03 Jan 2024 10:41:03 +0000

Description:
Microsoft president Brad Smith has adopted a more positive view of the CMA 
after the completion of the Activision Blizzard deal.

FULL STORY
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Microsoft president Brad Smith has softened his stance on the UKs Competition 
& Markets Authority (CMA) following the completion of the Activision Blizzard 
acquisition by Microsoft. 

In a new interview with the BBCs Today Program , Smith described the CMA as 
tough and fair before going on to say that they created a pragmatic path 
forward for innovation and investment. 

This is a dramatic change in tone compared to some of Smiths previous 
comments when news broke of the CMAs initial move to block the acquisition 
last year. 

In an earlier interview with the BBC back in April 2023, he lambasted the 
decision as bad for Britain and argued that the government should look hard 
at the role of the CMA and the regulatory structure in order to avoid any 
potential negative impacts on the growth of the UK technology sector. 

Much of the CMAs concern surrounding the deal related to Microsofts apparent 
market-leading position in the cloud gaming space, which it argued could harm 
competition and hamper innovation and choice for consumers in the long run. 

This has since been addressed, with Microsoft transferring the cloud 
streaming rights for Activions titles to Ubisoft . This, in addition to some 
further minor remedies, eventually allowed the deal to close on October 13, 
2023. 

Despite the initial disagreement, its really not that surprising to see Smith 
adopt a more positive attitude given that Microsoft has now managed to reach 
an acceptable compromise with the CMA. 

The completion of the deal was, of course, great news for Microsoft but it 
could also benefit you if youre an avid Xbox gamer. The wider impact of the 
deal has yet to be seen due to its relative recency, but consumers can expect 
to see some Activision Blizzard titles start to appear on Xbox Game Pass 
(Microsofts popular Netflix-like game subscription service) over the course 
of this year . 

 For all things Xbox, see our guides to the best Xbox Series X racing games 
or the best Xbox Game Pass games .



======================================================================
Link to news story:
https://www.techradar.com/gaming/microsoft-president-brad-smith-softens-stance
-on-the-cma-describing-them-as-fair-following-activision-blizzard-acquisition


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