Back in 2022, a major legal battle unfolded as the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) tried to block Microsoft’s huge plan to buy video game giant Activision Blizzard. This wasn’t just any acquisition — it was a $68.7 billion deal that would reshape the gaming industry and make Microsoft the third-largest gaming company in the world.
The story actually begins in mid-2021. After a Wall Street Journal report accused Activision Blizzard’s CEO, Bobby Kotick, of workplace misconduct, Microsoft quickly began eyeing the company for acquisition. This came shortly after Microsoft had already bought ZeniMax Media for $7.5 billion earlier that year.
In January 2022, Microsoft made it official: it wanted to buy Activision Blizzard. This was a huge move — the deal would bring some of the most popular gaming franchises like Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, and Candy Crush under Microsoft’s umbrella, potentially boosting its Xbox Game Pass subscription service dramatically.
The deal raised big antitrust concerns. The FTC worried Microsoft could use its Xbox platform and cloud services to limit competition, so in December 2022, they sued to block the acquisition. They even asked a judge to stop the deal temporarily in mid-2023, but the judge said no. The FTC appealed, but in May 2025 the higher court also rejected their request. Soon after, the FTC dropped the lawsuit.
Regulators outside the U.S. also kept a close eye on the deal, especially in the UK and EU. Despite some investigations, Microsoft got the green light from most authorities and officially closed the deal in October 2023.
