UK Prime Minister Spokesperson Denies Microsoft’s Claim That CMA Decision Is ‘Bad for Britain’

The spokesperson for UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has retaliated against the president of Microsoft’s comments that the Competitions and Markets Authority’s (CMA) decision over Xbox’s Activision Blizzard deal is “bad for Britain”.

Microsoft vice chair and president Brad Smith spoke against the CMA earlier this week by saying the decision to block the deal marked “probably the darkest day” in his company’s four-decade history in the UK, and that “the European Union is a more attractive place to start a business than the United Kingdom”.

Speaking to Reuters, the spokesperson for Prime Minister Sunak said this statement was false. “Those sorts of claims are not borne out by the facts,” they said, noting that the UK would continue to engage with Microsoft but the CMA is independent.

Smith made clear that Microsoft wasn’t happy with the decision, though the company will appeal it in hopes of completing its $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard.

“It does more than shake our confidence in the future of the opportunity to grow a technology business in Britain than we’ve ever confronted before,” Smith said earlier this week. “People are shocked, people are disappointed, and people’s confidence in technology in the UK has been severely shaken.”

The CMA’s chief executive Sarah Cardell also refuted Smith’s claims, reiterating what the competition regulator said in its final verdict.

“I think this decision shows actually how important it is to support competition in the UK and that the UK is absolutely open for business,” she said. “We want to create an environment where a whole host of different companies can compete effectively, can grow, and innovate.”

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer and acting UK news editor. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.