Activision Blizzard decides everything on its own: Microsoft responds to FTC accusations of breaking its own promises

By: Anton Kratiuk | 09.02.2024, 12:42

Yesterday we reported that the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has taken Microsoft to court over the impending layoff of 1,900 employees of Microsoft's gaming division, 900 of whom are Activision Blizzard employees.

The regulator considered this a violation of the corporation's promise to guarantee Activision Blizzard's full autonomy.

Here's What We Know

Microsoft published an official response to the FTC's claims, saying that Activision Blizzard had planned to conduct large-scale layoffs long before the Microsoft deal was finalised, regardless of how it ended. Activision Blizzard made the decision to make the cuts on its own due to changes in the gaming market and the global economic crisis, which caused most companies to resort to similar unpopular measures.

Microsoft also recalled that for the sake of the deal with Activision Blizzard, the corporation made a number of major concessions, agreed with Sony and Nintendo, gave Ubisoft a licence to operate its games in cloud services and held agreements with other companies.

Source: The Verge