Microsoft moves closer to completing $69 billion Activision takeover after court rebuffs regulators

By MATT O’BRIEN
Associated Press

A U.S. appeals court has rejected a bid by federal regulators to block Microsoft from closing its $68.7 billion deal to buy video game maker Activision Blizzard. The decision paves the way for the completion of the biggest acquisition in tech history after a legal battle over whether it will undermine competition. In a brief ruling Friday, a three-judge panel on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals concluded there were no grounds for issuing an order that would have prevent Microsoft from completing its nearly 18-month-old deal to take over the maker of popular video games such as Call of Duty.