In a significant development, the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has dismissed the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) final attempt to pause Microsoft's takeover of Activision Blizzard. This decision is likely to pave the way for the largest-ever merger in the gaming industry to proceed, bringing an end to a regulatory battle that has lasted for over a year.

The FTC had sought to keep the acquisition on hold, appealing a ruling from the Northern District of California that favored Microsoft. The FTC's goal was to halt the historic $69 billion merger, which would see renowned gaming franchises like Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, and Candy Crush joining the Xbox family.

Regulators argued that the federal court overlooked evidence suggesting that Microsoft could potentially make these franchises exclusive to its console and cloud gaming platforms, leading to market dominance. On the other hand, Microsoft accused the FTC of employing delay tactics and downplaying the substantial $3 billion breakup fee payable to Activision if the deal did not proceed.

While the Ninth Circuit will continue handling the appeal, it denied the FTC's motion to block the merger until a final ruling is reached, granting Microsoft the green light to finalize the deal on July 17.

The path to this point has been fraught with twists and turns, including the United Kingdom's intervention as the only country to block the merger so far. The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) denied the merger, expressing concerns about Microsoft's potential advantage in the emerging market of cloud gaming.

Following the FTC's initial court defeat, the CMA resumed negotiations with Microsoft to resolve the antitrust issues. The CMA has now extended its approval deadline for the deal until August, indicating a willingness to consider Microsoft's latest concessions.