US players to Microsoft He filed a lawsuit in California on Tuesday to block his merger with Activision.
A group that describes themselves as gamers joined forces to sue Microsoft to stop its bid to buy Activision Blizzard.
In a complaint filed with a federal court in California on Tuesday ( Reuters ), the plaintiffs argued that the $69 billion settlement could significantly reduce competition or establish a monopoly in violation of the Clayton Act.
Private antitrust lawsuits were filed by 10 video game players from California, New Mexico, and New Jersey.
They jointly describe themselves as having “a clear interest and intent to ensure that the industry remains competitive with the highest innovation, output, choice and price constraints now and in the future”.
Most of the plaintiffs said they played games on multiple platforms, while eight said they played games on PlayStation consoles compared to three who played games on Xbox systems.
"Microsoft's Activision Blizzard'The video game industry could lose significant competition if the proposition to buy iOs is allowed to continue, and Microsoft is outpacing its competitors, limiting production, reducing consumer choice, raising prices and further hampering competition, the lawsuit claims.
Earlier this month, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission said it was filing a lawsuit to block Microsoft's proposed acquisition, which it said would enable it to "suppress" competitors to Xbox consoles and its subscription content and cloud gaming business.
In response to the news, Microsoft president Brad Smith said the company is confident in its own situation and will try to prove that the deal is not anticompetitive.
