Microsoft Stock Fell After Signing the Nintendo Agreement, Smith Said, Ready To Defend the Activision Merger

Microsoft Stock

Microsoft Stock (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) President Brad Smith announced on Tuesday that the business has agreed to bring Xbox games to Nintendo (OTCPK:NTDOY). Smith announced while attending a hearing to defend the company’s planned acquisition of Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ:ATVI). Despite it, Microsoft stock declined.

To ensure “long-term equitable access” to the famous video game series, Smith tweeted that Microsoft has inked a “binding 10-year deal” to provide Call of Duty to Nintendo (OTCPK:NTDOY), releasing the games on the same day with all features and content.

Activision, the company that developed Call of Duty, is being bought by Microsoft for $69 billion.

Microsoft and Nintendo (OTCPK:NTDOY) first announced their partnership in December.

On Tuesday, Smith, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer, and Activision CEO Bobby Kotick argued before European Union antitrust authorities that the planned merger would increase competition, as reported by Reuters.

According to the news source, 18 high-ranking representatives from the two corporations were planning to testify in favor of the merger. Google, Nvidia, and Sony all dispatched representatives to express their opposition to the acquisition.

Update: Microsoft’s Smith stated after the hearing that the business will bring PC games and Activision titles to Nvidia’s GeForce Now streaming service and that customers overwhelmingly approve of the agreement to purchase Activision Blizzard.

The European Games Developers Federation, Electronic Arts (EA), and European competition authorities from Germany, Italy, and France are all involved.

There have already been substantial antitrust studies and objections to the Activision-Microsoft merger in the United States, United Kingdom, and the European Union.

At midday trading on Tuesday, Microsoft stock fell by 2%, while Activision stock dropped by less than 1%.

Deutsche Bank, an investment firm, upgraded Activision Blizzard last week, praising the publisher for having the “largest concentration” of “must-have content,” such as the Call of Duty series.

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