Microsoft and Activision have extended their deadline for a deal to buy the game maker until the end of the year.

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has announced that it will suspend litigation over the $69 billion Microsoft-Activision merger, allowing the companies to reach an agreement on how the acquisition might be altered to address competition concerns in that country. The announcement highlights the commitment by both companies to complete the deal after back-to-back court defeats for US regulators who had challenged the merger. The new contractual deadline for consummating the deal will be October 18, the two companies said on Wednesday. The announcement highlights the commitment by both companies to complete the deal after back-to-back court defeats for US regulators who had challenged the merger. The new contractual deadline for consummating the deal will be October 18, the companies said. The previous deadline was July 18. “Together with @Activision, we are announcing the extension of our merger agreement to 10/18 to provide ample time to work through the final regulatory issues,” Brad Smith, Microsoft’s vice chair and president, said in a Twitter post on Wednesday. FILE PHOTO: Logo of Microsoft is pictured on its office building in Beijing, China May 25, 2023. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/File Photo/File Photo Tingshu Wang/Reuters Federal appeals court rules Microsoft can close its Activision merger If the companies fail to close by Aug. 29, Microsoft could be asked to pay a breakup fee of $3.5 billion, an increase of $500 million over the previously agreed-upon sum, according to a filing from Activision with the Securities and Exchange Commission. If the deal fails to close by Sept. 15, the breakup fee could increase to $4.5 billion, the filing said. In addition, according to the filing, if the companies fail to complete their merger and Microsoft is forced to pay the breakup fee, the companies also agreed that beginning on Oct 18 Microsoft would have to pay Activision “100% of all proceeds or other payments for games” that belong to Activision. Following a federal judge’s decision last week in the US not to block the acquisition from closing, Microsoft announced a deal with the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to suspend litigation over the merger. The move is intended to give both sides time to reach agreement on how the acquisition might be altered to address competition concerns in that country. “The recent decision in the U.S.” — A spokesperson says they remain confident about reachingvision Blizzard Inc’ Microsoft Corp have mutually agreed to extend their merger deadline by three months in the face of ongoing negotiations with the UK government that could allow the $69 billion acquisition to close, the two companies announced on Wednesday. The announcement highlights the commitment by both companies to complete the deal after back-to-back court defeats for US regulators who had challengedthe merger. The new contractual deadline for consumm