While the news that Microsoft is in the process of taking over Activision Blizzard, the deal has not yet been finalized just yet as acquisitions of this magnitude have to be officially signed off on by all kinds of regulators in the United States government and entities around the world. Before Microsoft officially acquires Activision Blizzard and the deal goes all the way through, one United States congressman wants to take a long look.
Since the news broke of Microsoft taking over Call of Duty and World of Warcraft maker several people have expressed concern over the wide-ranging impact of the transaction. Some have focused on whether or not Activision CEO Bobby Kotick will stick around. Others are concerned about how much bigger it will make Activision Blizzard. It appears it's that fact that has officially grabbed the eye of a congressman
Earlier this week, the United States Representative from New Jersey, Jerry Nadler tweeted out his reaction to this latest move by Microsoft. In the post, Nadler said that Activision Blizzard has, "has a pattern of bullying workers to evade accountability for rampant sexual misconduct." He added that it's already a gaming giant and that by being folded into Microsoft it will become more powerful.
Nadler went on to say that he expects the deal to be "closely scrutinized." The basis of the scrutiny is to make sure that no workers are harmed because of this merger and because he doesn't want it to harm competition in the sector.
Nadler, who chairs the House Judiciary Committee would have at least some jurisdiction over the finalizing of any deal between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard. More specifically the Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee could be reviewing various aspects of this transaction. However, it's not entirely clear what they would be looking at as far as making sure that no other employees are "hurt" because of this merger.
For his part, Gamma Law's managing partner David Hoppe weighed in on Microsoft purchasing Activision Blizzard not long after news broke of the deal. The legal expert said he didn't see any obvious reasons why the federal government would find a reason to void the deal. If, on the other hand, the government does eventually sign off and approve the merger, it might not be done for quite a while. Some reports said that the process could run all the way to the end of June 2023 before everything becomes finished.