A federal judge on Tuesday granted the FTC's request for a temporary restraining order that prevents Microsoft from closing its acquisition of gaming giant Activision Blizzard.
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Why it matters: We're inching quite close to the July 18 deadline for the deal to either close, or an extension to be negotiated - or else, Microsoft will owe Activision Blizzard a $3 billion breakup fee.
Details: The companies are prevented from closing the deal "until after 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time on the fifth business day after the Court rules on the FTC's request for a preliminary injunction or a date set by the Court, whichever is later," per the order.
The bigger picture: It's been a long road for the companies since announcing the acquisition nearly a year and a half ago, in January 2022.
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