London sees itself as the post-Brexit champion of technology, but «the European Union is more attractive to create companies than the United Kingdom»Microsoft Chairman Brad Smith said in an interview with the BBC on Thursday, the day after the merger with Activision was blocked.
On Wednesday, the British Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) put the mega merger between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard at risk by announcing its decision to block the operation, after which the two companies announced to appeal the process.
The CMA decision was «the darkest day in four decades (of Microsoft) in Britain,» Smith told the British network, «But more than that, unfortunately, I think it’s negative» for the country, for sure.
Brad Smith, president of Microsoft, spoke about the main opportunities that the country has in this matter.
event screenshot
«It shakes our confidence more than ever in the future opportunities to develop a technology company in Britain,» he continued by noting that London «should carefully consider the role of the CMA«.
The CMA said it feared «reduced innovation and less choice for British gamers» in the growing cloud gaming market that offers users the ability to play games, especially on their phones. «We want to create an environment in which a variety of different companies can compete properly, develop and innovate,» Sarah Cardell, director general of the CMA, also defended on the BBC.
The new acquisition would give Blizzard greater positioning in the market.
Blizzard, Microsoft
The European Union also opened an investigation to determine whether the acquisition would make exclusive Activision games exclusive to Xbox and the European Commission must rule before May 22.
The merger also raises concerns in the United States, where its competition authority (FTC) filed lawsuits in December to block the deal.
The UK market is smaller than the US or EU market, but if the London lockdown is upheld on appeal, could force
Microsoft to give up the agreement.
More news
SIC investigates Claro and Movistar for portability failures
The challenges that Mauricio Lizcano will have as MinTIC