Microsoft’s proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard, which was announced in January, has been inching closer to completion, with the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announcing on Friday that it has reached a provisional finding that the acquisition wouldn’t harm competition. This announcement is a significant milestone, as the CMA had previously suggested that Microsoft might need to spin off the Call of Duty business to get the sale approved.

The CMA had initially been skeptical of Microsoft’s promises to keep the Call of Duty series available on PlayStation consoles for many years to come, arguing that Microsoft could have a financial incentive to pull the blockbuster series from the platform in the future. However, the CMA now says that after receiving more detailed information about Call of Duty player spending, it’s clear that making the series exclusive to Xbox would lose Microsoft a ton of money.

The CMA’s inquiry group updated its provisional findings and reached the provisional conclusion that the acquisition “will not result in a substantial lessening of competition in relation to console gaming in the UK.” The CMA’s final verdict on the cloud gaming side of the deal is still due out on April 26th.

Call of Duty seemed to be the biggest sticking point in the CMA’s skepticism of the deal, and Microsoft seems to have tentatively assuaged those fears. Microsoft has also been busy shoring up its defense on the cloud gaming front by striking deals with several smaller competitors to guarantee its first-party games will be available on other services if the deal goes through.

However, one big question that remains is what a final deal between Microsoft and Sony will look like. An Activision spokesperson had previously claimed that Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan was unwilling to negotiate, stating his only objective was to permanently kill the acquisition. As that outcome becomes increasingly unlikely, the PS5 manufacturer will seemingly have no alternative but to hammer out the details of Microsoft’s 10-year Call of Duty proposal.

In the meantime, Microsoft still needs to get approval from European regulators and deal with an antitrust lawsuit by the Federal Trade Commission. Despite these hurdles, investors seem more hyped for the deal than ever before, with Activision Blizzard’s stock price shooting up to $85 a share following the CMA’s latest announcement, more than at any point since the acquisition was announced.

It’s worth noting that this increase in Activision Blizzard’s stock price comes at a time when the company is facing allegations of widespread sexual harassment and discrimination, with a lawsuit filed against the company by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing. This issue has put pressure on Activision Blizzard’s leadership and raised concerns among employees and investors about the company’s culture and practices.

Microsoft’s proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard has inched closer to completion following the CMA’s provisional finding that the acquisition wouldn’t harm competition. However, there are still several hurdles to clear before the deal can be finalized, including gaining approval from European regulators and dealing with an antitrust lawsuit by the Federal Trade Commission. Regardless, investors seem bullish on the deal, with Activision Blizzard’s stock price rising to its highest level since the acquisition was announced.

The Microsoft-Activision Blizzard deal is a massive one that is poised to shake up the gaming industry. The acquisition will give Microsoft access to some of the biggest gaming franchises, including Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, and Candy Crush, and will significantly increase the company’s presence in the gaming industry.

The deal has been under scrutiny by regulators, and the latest news from the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will come as a relief to Microsoft. The CMA’s provisional finding that the acquisition won’t harm competition is a significant step forward for the deal. The CMA had previously expressed concerns about the potential for Microsoft to use the acquisition to limit competition, and had suggested that the Xbox maker might need to spin-off the Call of Duty business to get the sale approved.

The CMA was initially skeptical of Microsoft’s promises to keep Call of Duty available on PlayStation consoles for many years to come, arguing it could have a financial incentive to pull the blockbuster series from the platform in the future. However, the CMA now says that new data has provided better insight into the actual purchasing behavior of Call of Duty gamers, and it’s clear that making the series exclusive to Xbox would lose Microsoft a ton of money. This has led to the CMA updating its provisional findings and concluding that the transaction will not result in a substantial lessening of competition in relation to console gaming in the UK.

While the CMA’s decision is a significant milestone, there are still some hurdles that Microsoft needs to overcome before the deal is final. European regulators still need to approve the acquisition, and Microsoft is also dealing with an antitrust lawsuit by the Federal Trade Commission.

One of the biggest questions that remains is what a final deal between Microsoft and Sony will look like. The availability of Activision Blizzard games on Game Pass competitor PS Plus will be a key part of that. In its latest argument to the CMA pushing back on Sony’s concerns, Microsoft went so far as to suggest that 10 years would be plenty of time for it to go make its own Call of Duty competitor if it was so concerned about losing it.

The Microsoft-Activision Blizzard deal has significant implications for the gaming industry. It will make Microsoft a major player in the gaming industry, and give the company access to some of the biggest gaming franchises. While there are still some hurdles to overcome, the CMA’s latest announcement is a significant step forward for the acquisition, and investors seem more hyped for the deal than they’ve ever been. Only time will tell how the deal will ultimately impact the gaming industry, but it’s clear that it will be a significant one.