When Microsoft announced plans to acquire Activision Blizzard in 2022, it sparked multiple lawsuits, including with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which sought to block the deal. Microsoft won that case, and now another lawsuit surrounding the merger has finally been settled.
Via The Associated Press, Microsoft has settled a lawsuit filed by a group of gamers over the Activision Blizzard deal, which it said was detrimental to the video game industry. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the parties agreed to dismiss the case “with prejudice.” This means the lawsuit cannot be refiled.
Microsoft has settled a long-running lawsuit brought by so-called “gamers” challenging its deal with Activision Blizzard. The lawsuit was dismissed “with prejudice” and will not be refiled pic.twitter.com/VVkI9ICHf3
— Tom Warren (@tomwarren) October 14, 2024
The agreement between Microsoft and gamers also requires each party to pay attorneys’ fees. The lawsuit was originally filed in U.S. federal court in 2022. Earlier this year, the FTC filed a new brief in federal court alleging that Microsoft’s changes to Game Pass violated commitments the company made to gain federal regulatory approval for its Activision Blizzard acquisition.
Microsoft later responded to the FTC and disputed its description of Game Pass as a “downgraded product.” A U.S. federal court has yet to weigh the arguments from both sides. For now, nothing has changed.
