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Some competition agencies are conducting really deep investigations into whether or not to buy Microsoft to acquire the parents of Call of Duty and Diablo, among others. However, it seems that there are others who have it much clearer. And it is that we have been able to know that Japan agrees to purchase Activision Blizzard in record timecontrary to what is seen in the FTC, CMA or CE.
In the official statement in which the agency confirmed the acceptance of the purchase (via @PostUp_bbb), the JFTC has confirmed that the investigation time on the possible existence of a monopoly for the purchase of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft has been really reduced, needing only a few weeks to be able to conclude that it is not something detrimental to the industry.
Japan agrees to purchase Activision Blizzard in record time
In the statement that you can read just above these lines you can see that the JFTC has approved the operation almost immediately. As stated in the letter, the agency began the investigation phase (also known as phase 1) on March 10, 2023; and has issued its final conclusions in this regard today, March 28, 2023.
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In just 18 days, Japan has accepted the purchase of Activision Blizzardwhich would show that it is a truly beneficial deal for users and other companies, since it will further favor competition from a market that is led by Tencent and PlayStation. So Microsoft gets the green light from another of the key agencies in the deal, especially since Sony is the main opponent of this deal.
Although many doubted that Japan would approve the deal, especially given the concessions that the JFTC allows Sony within its borders, finally the decision of the Japanese competition authority has failed in a similar way to that of many other countries, shedding light green to the purchase of Activision Blizzard. This reinvigorates the idea that the operation will be approved sooner than later, especially after both CE and CMA seem to have reached the conclusion that it does not negatively affect the industry.