The Microsoft-Activision deal is a $69 billion problem in 2023. The tone for future Big Tech deals will be determined by whether it is defeated or not.
When the government last went after a Big Tech merger, it was a $69 billion problem. The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a lawsuit to stop the merger of AT&T and Time Warner, and the case went to trial. The problem was that the DOJ couldn’t prove that the merger would harm consumers.
Now, there’s a new $69 billion problem: the Microsoft-Activision deal. The DOJ has already cleared the deal, but there’s one big problem: the deal gives Microsoft a monopoly in the video game console market.
The problem is that the Microsoft-Activision deal will make it harder for new video game consoles to compete with the Xbox. The deal will also make it harder for new video game publishers to get their games on the Xbox.
The solution to the problem is to stop the Microsoft-Activision deal. That’s what Lina Khan, a law professor at Columbia University, is calling for. Khan is one of the leading experts on antitrust law, and she’s been calling for the government to stop the Microsoft-Activision deal.
Khan is right that the Microsoft-Activision deal is a monopoly. But she’s wrong about how to fix it. The solution is not to stop the deal, but to regulate it.
The government should require Microsoft to allow other video game consoles to connect to Xbox Live, the online service for Xbox gamers. The government should also require Microsoft to allow other video game publishers to publish their games on the Xbox.
Requiring Microsoft to allow other video game consoles to connect to Xbox Live would level the playing field. It would allow new video game consoles to compete with the Xbox.
Requiring Microsoft to allow other video game publishers to publish their games on the Xbox would level the playing field. It would allow new video game publishers to get their games on the Xbox.

Defeating the Microsoft-Activision Deal Will Set the Tone on Big Tech Deals for Years to Come
The Microsoft-Activision deal is a problem for Lina Khan in 2023. The tone for future Big Tech deals will be determined by whether it is defeated or not.
Khan is the director of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Bureau of Competition. She’s also a leading candidate to be the next chair of the FTC. And she has a problem. A big one.
In 2023, the Microsoft-Activision deal will expire. And when it does, it will leave Khan with a $69 billion problem.
The deal, which was struck in 2007, gave Microsoft control of the Call of Duty franchise. It also gave Microsoft a 30% stake in Activision Blizzard, the company that owns Call of Duty.
The deal was a win-win for both companies. Microsoft got a blockbuster franchise, and Activision Blizzard got a much-needed cash infusion.
But the deal had a sunset clause. In 2023, Microsoft will lose control of the Call of Duty franchise, and its stake in Activision Blizzard will be reduced to just 11%.
That’s a problem for Khan, because she’s a leading critic of big tech deals. She’s argued that they stifle competition and harm consumers.
If the Microsoft-Activision deal is allowed to expire, it will send a strong signal that big tech deals are no longer welcome in the U.S.
That’s why Khan is expected to try to block the deal and she will probably be successful.
The FTC has a long history of blocking big tech deals. In 2011, it blocked AT&T’s merger with T-Mobile. In 2012, it blocked Google’s acquisition of Motorola. And in 2013, it blocked Facebook’s acquisition of WhatsApp.
Khan was a key player in the WhatsApp decision. She argued that the deal would have given Facebook too much control over the messaging market. The FTC agreed, and it blocked the deal.
If Khan is successful in blocking the Microsoft-Activision deal, it will set the tone on big tech deals for years
Lina Khan: The Microsoft-Activision Deal’s Biggest Problem

In 2023, the Microsoft-Activision deal will give Lina Khan a $69 billion problem.
Khan, a lawyer and author of the definitive book on antitrust law, “The Microsoft-Activision Deal: Biggest Problem,” has been critical of the deal from the start.
She’s argued that it will give Microsoft an unfair advantage in the video game market and could lead to higher prices for consumers.
The deal, which was announced in September, still needs to be approved by regulators. But if it goes through, it will be the biggest merger in the history of the video game industry. And it will put Khan in the spotlight.
Khan has already been tapped by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) to serve on her presidential transition team. And she’s been mentioned as a possible pick for Warren’s running mate.
But it’s her work on antitrust law that could have the biggest impact on the Microsoft-Activision deal.
Khan’s work focuses on the history of antitrust law and how it has been used to stop monopolies. In her book, she argues that the current antitrust laws are too weak to stop the kind of consolidation that we’re seeing in the tech industry.
“The antitrust laws are not well equipped to deal with the problems of the 21st century,” Khan told Vox in an interview. They were actually created to deal the issues of the 20th century.
Khan’s work has been influential in the debate over the Microsoft-Activision deal. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), who is running for president, cited Khan’s work in a letter to the Justice Department, urging them to closely scrutinize the deal.
What Defeating the Microsoft-Activision Deal Would Mean for Big Tech
Lina Khan, the director of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Bureau of Competition, has a problem. In 2023, the proposed Microsoft-Activision deal will give her a $69 billion problem.
Khan’s problem is that the Microsoft-Activision deal, if approved, will give Microsoft an unfair advantage in the video game market. And, it will likely set the tone for other big tech deals for years to come.
The Microsoft-Activision deal is a merger of two giant companies. Microsoft is a giant tech company with a market value of $1.6 trillion. Activision Blizzard is a giant video game company with a market value of $69 billion.
The merger would give Microsoft a controlling stake in one of the most popular video game franchises in the world, “Call of Duty.”
The “Call of Duty” franchise is extremely popular. More than 250 million people play it worldwide and it generated $4 billion in revenue last year.
The problem is that the Microsoft-Activision deal would give Microsoft an unfair advantage in the video game market.
Microsoft would control one of the most popular video game franchises in the world. And, it would be able to use its vast resources to promote the “Call of Duty” franchise.
This would likely lead to less competition in the video game market. And, it would likely lead to higher prices for video games. The solution to Khan’s problem is to defeat the Microsoft-Activision deal.
If the FTC were to defeat the Microsoft-Activision deal, it would send a strong message to other big tech companies.
It would send a message that the FTC is serious about enforcing the antitrust laws. And, it would likely discourage other big tech companies from making similar deals.
The Microsoft-Activision deal is scheduled to be voted on by the FTC on December 12, 2018. Khan has until then
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