<h3 style="word-spacing:1px;font-size:1.375rem;line-height:24px;margin:0px 0px 15px;font-family:Arial,sans-serif!important">The Gaming Industry’s Wild Ride</h3><p style="font-size:1rem;letter-spacing:0px;font-family:arial,sans-serif;word-spacing:1px;margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:12px;line-height:1.5">The video game industry was taken by storm in January when <strong style="font-size:1rem">Microsoft</strong> announced plans to <a href="https://fos.cmail19.com/t/t-l-fgirjd-jlhdtrtre-td/" target="_blank" style="color:rgb(56,102,246);border-width:0px;text-decoration:none;font-size:1rem">acquire</a> “Call of Duty” and “World of Warcraft” owner <strong style="font-size:1rem">Activision Blizzard</strong> in a deal valued at<strong style="font-size:1rem"> $68.7 billion</strong>.</p><div id="m_1582541242452075122frnto-ad2ffd7606cfc3c52f38bbcd79e6ca38" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;word-spacing:1px" dir="auto"></div><p style="font-size:1rem;letter-spacing:0px;font-family:arial,sans-serif;word-spacing:1px;margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:12px;line-height:1.5">The acquisition would make Microsoft the third-largest gaming company by revenue, but the deal could collapse amid regulatory scrutiny. </p><ul style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;word-spacing:1px;padding-left:20px;list-style-position:outside"><li style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:12px;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.5;letter-spacing:0px">The <strong style="font-size:1rem">Federal Trade Commission has sued</strong> to <a href="https://fos.cmail19.com/t/t-l-fgirjd-jlhdtrtre-th/" target="_blank" style="color:rgb(56,102,246);border-width:0px;text-decoration:none;font-size:1rem">block</a> Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision, saying the sale would give Microsoft “both the means and motive to harm competition.”</li><li style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:12px;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.5;letter-spacing:0px">On Wednesday, the tech giant <a href="https://fos.cmail19.com/t/t-l-fgirjd-jlhdtrtre-tk/" target="_blank" style="color:rgb(56,102,246);border-width:0px;text-decoration:none;font-size:1rem">filed</a> a response to the suit arguing that its presence within the mobile gaming market is minimal and that blocking the deal would be unconstitutional. </li></ul><p style="font-size:1rem;letter-spacing:0px;font-family:arial,sans-serif;word-spacing:1px;margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:12px;line-height:1.5">The deal is also under regulatory scrutiny in the U.K., Australia, and the European Union.</p><p style="font-size:1rem;letter-spacing:0px;font-family:arial,sans-serif;word-spacing:1px;margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:12px;line-height:1.5" dir="auto">Microsoft and Activision weren’t the only <a href="https://fos.cmail19.com/t/t-l-fgirjd-jlhdtrtre-tu/" target="_blank" style="color:rgb(56,102,246);border-width:0px;text-decoration:none;font-size:1rem">gaming giants</a> coming together in 2022. In January, <strong style="font-size:1rem">Sony agreed to acquire Bungie</strong> — the original creator of “Halo” — for $3.6 billion.</p>-- <br><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div><br></div><div><div style="font-size:small">--<br>Ta.<br> <br> <br>Mark Rauterkus       <a href="mailto:Mark@Rauterkus.com" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank">Mark@Rauterkus.com</a> </div><div>Webmaster, International Swim Coaches Association, <a href="https://SwimISCA.org" target="_blank">SwimISCA.org</a></div><div></div><div style="font-size:small">Executive Director of SKWIM USA, a 501(c)(3), <a href="https://SKWIM.us" target="_blank">SKWIM.us</a><br></div><div style="font-size:small">Coach at The Ellis School for Varsity & Middle School Swimming<br></div><div style="font-size:small">Pittsburgh Combined Water Polo Team & Renegades (Masters) <br></div><div style="font-size:small">Sports Complex Director & Coach at Montour Heights Country Club</div><div style="font-size:small"><br>412 298 3432 = cell<br><br></div></div><div style="font-size:small">New course: Mental Skills for Young Athletes at <a href="https://Read.SwimISCA.org" target="_blank">https://Read.SwimISCA.org</a></div></div></div></div></div></div>