CWA Statement on the Denial of the FTC’s Injunction Against Microsoft’s Acquisition of Activision Blizzard

The Communications Workers of America applauds today's decision by U.S. District Court Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley to deny the Federal Trade Commission’s request for a preliminary injunction to prevent Microsoft from closing its deal to acquire Activision Blizzard.

Judge Corley’s role was to assess whether or not the FTC was likely to prevail in its antitrust proceeding against the acquisition. Her decision shows how much progress the FTC and other regulators have made since the deal was first proposed in early 2022. At that time, we raised concerns and asked that the FTC carefully consider the impacts on consumers and American workers. They did, and over the course of the past eighteen months, Microsoft has taken action to address those concerns.

As it relates to the impact on workers, the actions Microsoft have taken will not only prevent harm, they represent a true shift in the power workers will have in the video game industry.

Last year, after Microsoft announced its Principles on Employee Organizing and Engagement with Labor Organizations, CWA and Microsoft reached agreement on a ground-breaking, legally-binding labor neutrality agreement. The agreement, which will apply to the Activision Blizzard workforce once Microsoft’s proposed acquisition of the company is complete, committed Microsoft to a neutral approach when employees express interest in joining a union, with a free and fair process for voluntary recognition of the union.

In December, workers at Microsoft’s ZeniMax studio announced that they were organizing with CWA. Microsoft once again acted in accordance with its stated principles and agreed to a process that enabled the workers to freely and fairly decide if they wanted to form a union without management interference. In early January, a neutral arbitrator reviewed the results and certified that the ZeniMax workers had voted to be represented by CWA.

Collective bargaining agreements play a critical role in counterbalancing employer market power. Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan has championed antitrust policies that protect workers interests. Under her leadership, the FTC's intention to examine labor market impacts of mergers is well known, creating a regulatory environment that facilitated CWA's unprecedented labor neutrality agreement with Microsoft. Since the FTC’s initial move against Microsoft’s transaction, the company has accepted additional conditions to the acquisition in order to strengthen consumer protections.

By accepting Judge Corley’s decision and allowing this merger to move forward, the Federal Trade Commission has an opportunity to transform the video game and technology labor market by providing a clear path to collective bargaining for almost 10,000 workers.

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