Armistice: The Tipline for 17 July 2023

Returning from a relaxing weekend? Surely not for readers working on the Federal Trade Commission’s challenge to Microsoft/Activision. The government and merging parties delivered 126 pages in briefs to the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on Friday as they quarrelled over the commission’s request to push pause on the deal. A three-judge panel rejected the FTC’s motion, but the work did not stop there. Yesterday, Microsoft said it had reached a binding 10-year deal with Sony to keep making Call of Duty for PlayStation. The Console Wars are far from over, but there is at least a ceasefire on this front.