CMA to make its final decision of Microsoft's Activision Blizzard King merger at the end of August

The UK's Competition and Markets Authority has announced that it will no longer be making its final decision on Microsoft's mega $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard King next week.

As Gamesindustry.biz reports, the regulator has revealed that it has pushed the decision deadline by six weeks, meaning we'll now know a final decision by August 29, 2023, instead of the July 18, 2023 that was originally noted.

What this means is that there is still a chance that the CMA won't launch its block against the merger, as this was supposed to come into effect on the July 18th deadline. Microsoft will of course look to use this extension to change the CMA's understanding of the deal and to get it approved in the UK instead.

The pushed deadline will likely mean that Microsoft and Activision will need to extend the acquisition deadline themselves, something that will see Microsoft having to compensate Activision with $3 billion for. Although it is possible that the deal will be completed before the July 18th deadline, under the assumption that the CMA will ultimately approve it.