A federal appeals court has ruled that Microsoft can close its Activision merger, despite a challenge by the Justice Department.

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) cannot block Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. The decision by the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is a blow to antitrust officials who had requested an emergency injunction of a lower court ruling from Tuesday allowing the deal to close. The combination is set to make Microsoft the world’s third-largest video game publisher after Tencent and Sony. Under the terms of the deal, Microsoft has until July 18 to consummate the merger, though the two companies involved could mutually seek to extend the deadline. Document: — A federal appeals court said it will not block Microsoft (MSFT) from closing its $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, handing the Federal Trade Commission its second major defeat this week in a case involving the future of the video game industry. The decision by the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is a blow to antitrust officials who had requested an emergency injunction of a lower court ruling from Tuesday allowing the deal to close. The combination is set to make Microsoft the world’s third-largest video game publisher after Tencent and Sony. Under the terms of the deal, Microsoft has until July 18 to consummate the merger, though the two companies involved could mutually seek to extend Documentation on how much money you can make with your own YouTube channel. Summary: The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) may not block Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. The decision by the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is a blow to antitrust officials who had requested an emergency injunction of a lower court ruling from Tuesday allowing the deal to close. The combination is set to make Microsoft the world’s third-largest video game publisher after Tencent and Sony. Under the terms of the deal, Microsoft has until July 18 to consummate the merger, though the two companies involved could mutually seek to extend the deadline. Summary: The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) may not block Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. The decision by the US Court of The Nin Circuit The Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the Federal Trade Commission not block Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of Acti Blizzard. The decision by the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is to antitrust officials who had requested an emergency in Wednesday’ lower court ruling from Tuesday allowing the deal to close was thrown out by the Ninth Circuit Court of