After more than a year, Microsoft may finally be able to let out a sigh of relief. A US Judge has denied the preliminary injunction request by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to put a halt on the acquisition of Activision by Microsoft.

After a five-day-long legal hearing involving the top executives from both Sony and Microsoft, the Activision-Blizzard acquisition deal looks like it’s on the table once again. With the verdict, Xbox fans can finally look forward to some exciting new Xbox exclusives.

The acquisition proposal triggered Sony

Microsoft announced last year that they are looking to take over Call of Duty developers Activision-Blizzard. The news made waves in the community and Sony couldn’t stay silent. The PlayStation makers appealed to halt the acquisition saying that it would unfairly tilt the scale in favor of Microsoft, changing the video game console industry radically.

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However, Microsoft held their ground and stated that Sony’s dominant market position is secure and that they need not worry about losing to Xbox any time soon. Microsoft also said that the deal will not hamper Sony’s arsenal of exclusive titles at all. The Xbox makers also promised not to restrict any future Activision releases to PlayStation players. Microsoft’s arguments also highlighted that Sony has a number of exclusive titles and it’s about time Microsoft got some as well.

Read more: The Rejected Offer – Jim Ryan’s Counter-Proposal To Phil Spencer in The Microsoft-Activision Blizzard Acquisition

A win for Microsoft

However, Sony wasn’t convinced and put all their efforts into nullifying the deal. Sony’s clamor led the FTC to take Microsoft to court to explain the details of the acquisition. Despite all their efforts, Sony’s attempts seem to be in vain as Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley has denied FTC’s injunction requests. You can find the entire ruling online, in case you’re curious enough to know the details.

The $69 billion deal would have been nullified on July 18 if the injunction had been accepted. Microsoft made it clear that the injunction would result in tremendous losses for them. With the new ruling, Sony will have to come up with new plans to secure a leading industry position.

Which side are you on? Let us know below!

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