Microsoft offers new Activision Blizzard deal to UK competition watchdog August 22, 2023 Microsoft has put a fresh deal on the table for its $69bn (£55bn) acquisition of gaming giant Activision Blizzard, triggering a new investigation by Britain’s competition watchdog. On Tuesday the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) confirmed it is blocking the original deal to protect consumer choice in cloud gaming. However, Microsoft has submitted a fresh [...]
UK competition agency clears Broadcom’s £54bn deal for VMware August 21, 2023 Broadcom’s proposed purchase of VMware would not substantially reduce competition in the supply of server hardware components in the UK, the industry regulator has said. The UK’s competition watchdog has cleared the largest deal in its history as it said that the tie-up of US companies Broadcom and VMware would not damage UK competition. The [...]
Australia’s blocking of Qatar airways is a parable in anti-competitive intervention August 18, 2023 With such strong demand for travel to Australia, extra Qatar airways flights would mean more competition and a dent in Qantas’ record profits - something the Australian government wants to block.
Why is Netflix jumping into the cloud gaming market? August 15, 2023 Netflix first announced its move into the cloud gaming industry back in November 2021, and it is now starting to test its games in the UK on televisions and computers as it looks to grow the service. Cloud gaming – sometimes known as gaming on demand or game streaming – allows users to play video [...]
Natwest gets slap on the wrist after flouting customer service rules August 15, 2023 Natwest and the Co-Operative Bank have been given a slap on the wrist by the competition watchdog today after potentially misleading customers over the quality of service they were receiving. In letters to the two banks today, the Competition and Markets Authority said Natwest and Co-Op Bank had both breached part three of the Retail [...]
Ranked: The best banks for customer service? Monzo and Starling steam ahead August 15, 2023 Which banks are the best for customer service? A new official ranking has been produced by the consumer regulator
Biden declares ‘national emergency’ as he bans US investment in Chinese tech August 10, 2023 President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed an executive order that will prohibit some new U.S. investment in China in sensitive technologies like computer chips and require government notification in other tech sectors. The long-awaited order authorizes the U.S. Treasury secretary to prohibit or restrict U.S. investments in Chinese entities in three sectors: semiconductors and microelectronics, quantum information technologies [...]
Is chess a sport? It soon may be chasing the Olympic Holy Grail August 10, 2023 Columnist Ed Warner discusses chess, funding fringe sports and what makes a solid sporting body chief executive. Where do you draw the line between games and sports? Mine is at the door of the pub, so ruling dominos, bar billiards, space invaders and darts out of the sporting firmament. I realise of course that this [...]
Tribunal upholds £84m CMA fine for firm that hiked drug prices August 8, 2023 The companies behind a drug whose price was hiked from £20 to £248 per pack in just eight years will be fined a combined £84 million after a tribunal upheld the competition watchdog’s decision. The Competition Appeal Tribunal on Tuesday had endorsed “all the main elements” of the Competition and Markets Authority’s decision, the CMA [...]
Shapps warns fuel retailers he will ‘call out any foot-dragging’ on price transparency August 8, 2023 Energy Secretary Grant Shapps has warned fuel retailers he will “call out any foot-dragging” over the sharing of pump price data. He made the comment as drivers were hit by the largest weekly rise in petrol prices for more than a year. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is planning to launch an interim voluntary [...]