FTC official withdraws internal suit over Microsoft, Activision merger
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An official from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission removed the agency's lawsuit over Microsoft's (NASDAQ:MSFT) acquisition of Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ:ATVI) that was to be presented before an in-house judge.
"It is ordered ... that this matter in its entirety be and it hereby is withdrawn from adjudication, and that all proceedings before the Administrative Law Judge be and they hereby are stayed," FTC Secretary April Tabor wrote in the order.
The removal, which happened late on Thursday, was the second avenue the FTC had been taking to block the merger.
Earlier this month, the FTC received two defeats in court over the pending merger, which would see Microsoft (MSFT) acquire the Call of Duty maker in its largest acquisition ever. 
First, a federal judge in San Francisco denied the antitrust regulator's request for a preliminary injunction to block the mega deal. Subsequently, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals denied the FTC's request to temporarily halt the deal while the agency appeals.
On Wednesday, Microsoft (MSFT) and Activision (ATVI) filed a motion with the FTC asking the agency to drop its in-house lawsuit. The two companies also extended the deadline for the planned $69B acquisition until October 18. 
Microsoft (MSFT) shares were fractionally higher in pre-market trading on Friday while Activision was little changed.
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