China's 'normal procedure' review of Microsoft's Activision deal may come soon
Kevork Djansezian

A notification with China's antitrust authority under "normal procedure" into Microsoft's (NASDAQ:MSFT) planned $69 billion acquisition of Activision (NASDAQ:ATVI) may come soon.
China's State Administration for Market Regulation likely wants to first review the European Commission's issues with the proposed combination, according to a Dealreporter item. While the deal is under in-depth review in the U.S., Europe and the U.K., the parties haven't filed with SAMR yet.
The companies initially filed the transaction with SAMR in April under a "simplified procedure," though they were forced to file it under normal procedure. Two separate reports on Friday said that SAMR had rejected the simplified filing request.
The latest report also follows Blizzard Entertainment (ATVI) saying last week that it will be suspending most Blizzard game services in mainland China due to the expiration of the current licensing agreements with NetEase (NTES) in January.
Activision (ATVI) CEO Bobby Kotick recently said its planned $69B sale to Microsoft (MSFT) remains on track to close in the quarter ending in June.
Activision (ATVI) shares gained 1.3% in trading on Tuesday.
Earlier Tuesday Activision (ATVI) was upgraded to outperform at Baird on the likely Microsoft deal close next year and product launches.