Kagan rejects emergency request to block Microsoft, Activision Blizzard merger

Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan on Tuesday rejected an emergency request to block Microsoft and Activision Blizzard from merging.

In a brief order, Kagan denied a last-minute bid from a group of gamers to temporarily halt the $68.7 billion deal. The gamers’ attorney, Joseph Alioto, argued the deal would lessen competition in the video game industry, urging the high court for a pause until the gamers’ case can be heard in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. 

Kagan received their motion because she is assigned to handle emergency requests arising out of the 9th Circuit. The gamers could now renew their request to any other justice.

“The merger between Microsoft and Activision would be one of, if not the largest technology mergers in history, at a time when concentration among technology companies is already threatening the competitive balance of our economy and even our political systems,” Alioto wrote.

The 9th Circuit on Friday separately denied a bid by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to stop the merger, removing one of the few remaining barriers for the deal to go through.

The deal still faces a challenge from the United Kingdom. On Monday, Microsoft and British regulators received more time from a court to resolve the dispute.

The merger has a Tuesday closing deadline, but Bloomberg reported the parties won’t walk away and will continue seeking the needed regulatory approvals.

Merging the two companies would give Microsoft, which owns the Xbox gaming console, complete control over popular video game franchises like “Call of Duty,” “World of Warcraft” and “Overwatch.”

The gamers sued over the merger in December of last year under federal antitrust law, alleging the deal might substantially lessen competition across numerous video game markets. 

A federal district court handed a victory to Microsoft in May, denying the gamers’ bid for a preliminary injunction by ruling they were not threatened with irreparable harm. The gamers’ then appealed last month, which remains pending.

“Failure to grant relief will allow the largest technology merger to consummate before Plaintiffs can even be heard on the merits,” Alioto wrote.