👉 Background: Activision is the giant American video game company, known for games like Call of Duty, Destiny, Spiderman games, Tony Hawk and many many more. Back in January 2022, Microsoft first announced its plans to acquire Activision.

👉 What happened: But late last week, UK regulators said they will be blocking Microsoft's $69B USD acquisition of Activision. That’s because regulators around the world are concerned it would hurt competition. And it ain't just in the UK:

• In the US, the FTC is still evaluating the merger
• The EU is set to make a formal decision next month
  

👉 What else: Microsoft’s already planning to appeal the UK’s decision decision from last week. Because here’s the thing: if it fails, it’ll owe Activision $3B in break-up fees.

What's the key learning?

💡One bold decision today can create a precedent for many more, bold decisions in the future. The UK’s decision is a rare win for supporters of Big Tech regulation, and it could prompt more crackdowns in the US, where major antitrust rulings have been scarce.

💡As governments get tougher on protecting competition, big tech companies may have to revisit their M&A strategies, or risk losing billions if they fail.

💡Microsoft already controls between 60% - 70% of global cloud-gaming services. So if Microsoft takes ownership of Activision's billion-dollar franchises, it could make it tougher for others to compete.