SONY - UK court filing may be positive for Microsoft deal for Activision - report

2023-06-30 10:57:57 ET

A close reading of a UK court's denial of a request by the country's antitrust regulator to delay a hearing on Microsoft's ( NASDAQ: MSFT ) appeal to the agency's block of the Activision ( NASDAQ: ATVI ) deal may be potentially positive.

The Competition Appeal Tribunal denied a request on Wednesday from the UK's Competition and Markets Authority for the adjournment of the hearing until October, according to a filing on the court's website on Thursday.

The denial included language that suggested that the CMA needed more time to prepare its final order on the transaction after issuing its brief interim order blocking the Activision dea l in April, citing concerns about cloud gaming. The main hearing in the appeal is set for July 28, with a time estimate of six days for the length of the trial.

"...It is suggested that the CMA has much other work to do ... great deal of time is being spent by the CMA preparing for the final order consequent of the Decision," according to the Appeal Tribunal filing.

Investors are focusing on that language and the possibility that Microsoft could have offered concessions in their comment period or that the final order may be different from the interim order, which may allow some leeway for Microsoft to close the deal,  CNBC's David Faber said on Friday, citing people who are scrutinizing the court filings.

"It may point to some difference between the interim and final order and Microsoft's efforts to get it changed, giving it the leeway to perhaps even close the transaction while they still await word from the Competition Appeal Tribunal," Faber said.

The report comes after the Federal Trade Commission's 5-day trial to get a preliminary injunction blocking the $69 billion Activision deal concluded on Thursday.

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