​Microsoft could abandon its acquisition of Activision Blizzard if a court temporarily blocks the deal, which is the largest in video game history. Microsoft is to pay $70 billion for Activision Blizzard, but some authorities and companies are against it, fearing it would hurt competition in the $175 billion market.

In the spring, Britain’s antitrust authority said it opposed the proposed deal, but on May 15 the European Commission said it would give the green light after Microsoft promised to make a number of concessions.

The big “leap” is to be made in the US, where the influential Federal Trade Commission (FTC) wants to block the proposed transaction, arguing that the consequences for rival companies such as Sony could be devastating, as Microsoft could decide that some games that are not may still be present on competitor consoles.

On Thursday, a series of hearings on the acquisition began in US federal court and will continue until June 29, and Microsoft said that if the judge decides to temporarily block the transaction from being initiated, Microsoft will completely abandon the purchase of Activision.

Microsoft has said that if the lawsuit is lost, it will be a “three-year administrative nightmare” so the deal can no longer be initialed before the July 18 deadline. Thus, the only option would be to abandon the proposed takeover altogether.

The FTC asked the judge for a temporary stay, which would mean Microsoft would NOT be able to initial the deal before the deadline, and the FTC would have time to legally prepare its case for a final injunction.

In December, the FTC asked its national administrative tribunal to block the deal, one of the reasons being that Microsoft could remove some Activision games from Nintendo and PlayStation consoles. Microsoft has repeatedly denied that it intends to do so.

Sources: New York Times, Reuters