European Commission approves Microsoft’s $ 7.5 billion deal to acquire ZeniMax Media, parent company of Doem and Dropout Bethesda Softworks studio. Microsoft’s agreement was unconditionally approved by the EU, as it “does not raise serious doubts about its compatibility with the common market.” The acquisition required EU approval before Microsoft could finalize the Bethesda deal and bring future games to its Xbox Game Pass subscription.
“The Commission has concluded that the proposed acquisition will not raise any concerns, given the limited market position of the combined business upstream and the presence of strong downstream competitors in the distribution of video games,” reads a statement from the European Commission. “The transaction was investigated under the normal merger procedure.”
Once the deal is fully concluded, Microsoft’s list of first-party studios will rise to 23, following the addition of Bethesda sub-studios such as Disgrace developer Arkane, Wolfenstein studio MachineGames, Doem maker id software, and The evil inside studio Tango Gameworks. Microsoft apparently intends to keep Bethesda running separately, with its existing leadership. The approach seems to have worked for Mojang, LinkedIn, and GitHub, all of which continued separately after Microsoft acquired it.
Microsoft originally announced plans to acquire Bethesda in September, promising to meet PS5 exclusivity obligations Deathloop and GhostWire: Tokyo. Games like The Elder Scrolls: Online will also ‘continue to support exactly as it was.’
According to Microsoft’s game chief Phil Spencer in September, Microsoft will deal with a “case-by-case basis”. It’s still unclear how Microsoft plans to handle the upcoming space email Starfield.
Microsoft may not even need to launch future Bethesda games exclusively on Xbox. Just having it on the first day on Xbox Game Pass can in itself be a big draw for players to sign up. Xbox game chief Phil Spencer also recently questioned the viability of game exclusivity deals, and Microsoft’s plans for Xbox are very much focused on Xbox Game Pass and millions of xCloud games.
In fact, Microsoft plans to outline its plans for Xbox later this month. There are rumors that a “future of gaming” event will take place on March 23, and this could be an ideal opportunity for Microsoft to discuss the future of Bethesda, xCloud on iOS, and its plans for Xbox Game Pass.
Update, 8 March 06:40 ET: Article updated with full statement from the European Commission.