“We expect and think it’s appropriate for regulators to take a close look at this acquisition,” Lisa Tanzi, corporate vice president & general counsel at Microsoft, said in a statement Wednesday. “We have been clear about how we plan to run our gaming business and why we believe the deal will benefit gamers, developers, and the industry.”
“We’re committed to answering questions from regulators and ultimately believe a thorough review will help the deal close with broad confidence, and that it will be positive for competition,” Tanzi added. “We remain confident the deal will close in fiscal year 2023 as initially anticipated.”
As part of the inquiry, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is soliciting public input on the matter until July 20. Based on the record, the CMA may then decide whether a more detailed investigation is warranted. The agency has a September deadline to make that decision, though the exact date could shift.
“It really behooves us to step forward quickly and proactively and be very transparent about how we will manage this business, with a clear eye toward the competition law issues and responsibilities that we have,” Microsoft President Brad Smith told reporters at the time.
