The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has officially ended its legal challenge against Microsoft’s $68.7 billion acquisition of video game giant Activision Blizzard.
On Thursday, the FTC filed to dismiss its case, bringing the long-running regulatory fight to a close.
The agency said that dropping the case was in the public’s best interest. This move comes shortly after the FTC lost an appeal to secure a preliminary injunction that would have stopped Microsoft from completing the merger.
Microsoft initially announced the deal in early 2022. Despite pushback from regulators, the company won a legal battle with the FTC in July 2023. The acquisition was finalized in October of the same year. Although the FTC continued to appeal the decision, an appeals court rejected their efforts earlier this month.
Brad Smith, Microsoft’s vice chair and president, welcomed the FTC’s decision. “Today’s decision is a victory for players across the country and common sense in Washington, DC,” he said, expressing gratitude for the resolution.
This decision officially ends a nearly two-year legal dispute and cements Microsoft’s ownership of one of the largest video game publishers in the industry.
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