What's happened
The UK's Competition and Markets Authority has approved Microsoft's $69 billion acquisition of the gaming giant Activision Blizzard after nearly two years of legal wrangling.
Why it matters
The approval paves the way for one of the technology sector's biggest takeovers and will impact the gaming industry worldwide.
What the papers say
The Times and The Independent report on the CMA's approval of Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard, while The Guardian and BBC News also cover the story.
How we got here
The deal was initially blocked in April due to concerns about fair competition in the cloud gaming market. Microsoft restructured its plans and resubmitted them for approval in August, agreeing to put its cloud gaming rights in the hands of Ubisoft, a competitor, for the next 15 years.
More on these topics
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The Competition and Markets Authority is a non-ministerial government department in the United Kingdom, responsible for strengthening business competition and preventing and reducing anti-competitive activities.
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Activision Blizzard, Inc. is an American video game holding company based in Santa Monica, California. The company was founded in July 2008 through the merger of Activision, Inc. and Vivendi Games.
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The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign country located off the northÂwestern coast of the European mainland.
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Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology company with headquarters in Redmond, Washington. It develops, manufactures, licenses, supports, and sells computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services.
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Call of Duty is a first-person shooter video game franchise published by Activision. Starting out in 2003, it first focused on games set in World War II.
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Bradford Lee Smith is an American attorney and technology executive currently serving as President of Microsoft, concurrently serving as chief legal officer.