Microsoft has responded to the remedies suggested by the UK's Competition and Markets Authority to ensure that the proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard could smoothly go through.
Sony has also responded to the proposed remedies of the CMA. A significant portion of the 33-page response of Microsoft objects to the suggestion of CMA that some of Activision Blizzard's businesses and properties be divested before the merger goes through.
It was said by Microsoft that these would be inappropriate and that even a partial divestment would be "highly uncertain and impracticable." It added that divestment would actually have "severe adverse effects" in the games space because it would prevent Microsoft from "achieving its key strategic objective – namely building a mobile gaming business with sufficient scale in order to challenge Google and Apple."
"A divestment preserves the status quo and harms Xbox and PC gamers," the company continued. "As such, if the CMA expects that Sony will be 'significantly weakened' by partial exclusivity, the CMA must equally acknowledge that Microsoft is 'significantly weakened' by the status quo arrangements, which would be preserved by a divestment."
Divestment would mean Xbox and PC would lose out on exclusive Call of Duty content, since this would presumably be available to PlayStation.