Appeals court rejects the FTC’s last-ditch attempt to stop Microsoft from buying Activision

The Federal Trade Commission has been unsuccessful in its last-ditch effort to pump the brakes on Microsoft’s $68.7 billion purchase of Activision Blizzard. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals declined to grant the agency an emergency stay of a ruling that allows the deal to proceed in the US.

A temporary restraining order was put in place last month to prevent Microsoft and Activision from closing the acquisition until Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley ruled on the FTC’s request for a preliminary injunction. When Corley rejected the FTC’s injunction request this week, she ruled that the agency had until 11:59PM PT on July 14th to obtain an emergency stay from the appeals court. With the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rejecting the FTC’s appeal, Microsoft and Activision are now free to close the deal in the US as early as Saturday.

In her injunction ruling, Corley determined the FTC didn’t prove its claims that the merger would harm consumers. The FTC said on Wednesday it would appeal Corley’s decision. On Thursday, it asked the district court that ruled on the preliminary injunction in the first place to …read more