Glencore Posts Strong H1 2026 Earnings, Announces ASX Secondary Listing 
Brazil Cuts Selic Rate to 14% as Inflation Eases but Risks Persist 
Canada, US Hold Constructive Trade Talks as Tariff Negotiations Continue 
Nvidia to Invest Up to $3 Billion in Blackstone-Backed Lancium 
SoftBank Q1 Profit Beats Forecast as Intel Rally and OpenAI Investments Boost Returns 
Qantas Shares Climb as Long-Haul Pilot Deal Eases Strike Concerns 
Roblox Stock Drops 16% as Q3 Bookings Forecast Misses Expectations 
Australia Trade Surplus Returns in June as Iron Ore, Coal and LNG Exports Surge 
Meta Ordered to Pay $567M Over Child Safety Violations in New Mexico 
Alphabet Stock Slides as Google AI Pioneer Jeff Dean Exits to Launch Discovery Loop 
China Trade Surplus Beats Forecasts in July as Exports Stay Strong 
UK Services PMI Returns to Growth in July as New Orders and Confidence Rebound 
UOB Q2 Net Profit Rises 10% as Wealth Management Growth Boosts Earnings 
Samsung, SK Hynix Test AMEC Chipmaking Tools for China Backup Plan 
OpenAI Restricts Astra AI Over Cyberattack Risks 
Trump Unveils $3 Billion U.S. Critical Minerals Push 
Microsoft Corporation earned another point with its bid to acquire the Santa Monica, California-based video game holding company, Activision Blizzard, after the South Korean anti-trust regulator announced it has approved the takeover.
Korea's anti-trust watchdog, the Fair Trade Commission (FTC), said on Tuesday, May 30, it handed down unconditional approval for Microsoft's $68.7 billion deal to acquire Activision Blizzard. The agency explained it made the decision to allow the takeover after determining that the companies have limited influence in the domestic market.
Korea Joongang Daily reported that before coming to a decision, the FTC carefully reviewed any possible effect that Microsoft and Activision Blizzard's merger will have on the competition in the country's local console and cloud gaming markets. In the end, it did not find issues if the deal would push through.
"We have approved the deal after concluding there's no concern regarding limiting competition in the domestic gaming market," the FTC said in a statement. "The chance of foreclosure is low, and even if foreclosure occurs, there is little concern of competitors being excluded from the market. Unlike overseas, Blizzard's major games are not hugely popular in Korea's console gaming market."
Before reaching a decision, the FTC discussed the matter with overseas anti-trust regulators so it could consider their opinions as well. The agency also looked into the console market and discovered that compared to Sony's PlayStation gaming console, which takes up 70 to 80% of the market, Microsoft's Xbox only has 5 to 10% of the market share in the country, this contributed to its decision to greenlight the deal.
Meanwhile, it was in April 2022 when Microsoft filed for the approval of its acquisition of Activision Blizzard. The European Union already said "yes" to the deal provided that the "Call of Duty" game publisher will make its contents accessible to other rival cloud platforms. The United States is also expected to announce its decision this coming August, according to Yonhap News Agency.
Photo: Mika Baumeister/Unsplash
