Shulou(Shulou.com)11/24 Report--

Beijing time on May 12 morning news, according to reports, American gamers in a federal district court in San Francisco, California, filed an antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft from the private sector, alleging that the acquisition of Activision Blizzard would harm fair competition and that the court should block it. Microsoft is also expected to defend its deal in court on Friday.

American gamers reportedly filed an injunction application, blocking Microsoft's acquisition. Federal District Judge Jacqueline Corley will evaluate the application Friday.

If Microsoft buys Activision Blizzard, it would be the biggest acquisition in the history of the global gaming market. Microsoft explained that the acquisition was beneficial to gamers, and Microsoft's lawyers had asked Judge Collin to reject the player plaintiff's injunction application.

Microsoft's lawyers told judge curlin on may 5 that the player plaintiffs 'claims in the lawsuit were unprecedented and that no court in u.s. legal history had blocked a takeover based on alleged losses by several consumers, court documents said.

Microsoft's acquisition, announced in January 2022, caused an uproar and was reviewed by antitrust authorities in the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom and other countries.

In April, the UK government's antitrust agency announced it would veto the deal because Microsoft could not address concerns that the gaming industry "hurt competition."

The Federal Trade Commission, America's antitrust agency, has also launched an investigation into the deal, but has yet to reach a formal conclusion.

Joseph Alioto, a lawyer representing gamers, said gamers had a strong case against the deal.

A Microsoft spokesman said the gamer complaint made unfounded and unreasonable statements about the impact of the Microsoft merger on competition.

Under U.S. antitrust law, ordinary consumers can also file antitrust suits against proposed mergers and acquisitions, which are distinct from antitrust suits filed by government agencies.

In March, Judge Collin dismissed the plaintiffs 'original version of the complaint as inadequate, and later allowed them to file a new, more substantial complaint.

On monday, plaintiffs lawyers asked judge colin to block the acquisition first, and then to consider the implications of the microsoft takeover in court.

Plaintiffs 'lawyers said in a court filing that if Microsoft completes its acquisition of Activision Blizzard, the damage to competition will be irreparable and it will be extremely difficult to cancel it after the acquisition is completed.

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