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U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley dismissed the
plaintiffs' first complaint in March after finding it failed to
present enough information to back claims the acquisition would
harm industry competition.
The judge said at the time the plaintiffs could refile a new
suit, which challenges the largest-ever video game industry
deal. Amended lawsuits are still subject to court scrutiny and
also can be dismissed.
The new 73-page lawsuit contained redacted assertions derived
from Microsoft internal documents, including a strategy memo and
other business reports that were "provided directly to the board
of directors." The complaint also contained information from
rival Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.
Microsoft has denied the gamers' claims that the proposed
transaction, which faces regulatory scrutiny in venues including
the U.S., Europe and Japan, would curb competition.
A spokesperson for Microsoft in a statement on Tuesday said the
amended complaint contained "unsupported and implausible claims
about the deal's effect on competition." Microsoft said it will
"bring more games to more people" through its proposed deal with
Activision.
An attorney for the plaintiffs did not immediately respond to a
message seeking comment.
U.S. antitrust laws allow private consumers to sue over deals
apart from regulatory and enforcement agencies.
Lawyers for Microsoft said in a court filing last week that the
gamers' original case "relied largely on flawed legal arguments
based on outdated Supreme Court cases."
Microsoft's lawyers also said the plaintiffs "waited 11 months
after the transaction was announced to file their lawsuit, and
then wasted several additional months filing an implausible
complaint."
The plaintiffs' lawyers have served subpoenas on companies
including Activision and rivals including Nintendo of America
Inc and Sony.
Corley is scheduled to meet with the lawyers on Wednesday for a
status conference.
The case is Demartini v. Microsoft Corp, U.S. District Court for
the Northern District of California, No.3:22-cv-08991.
(Reporting by Mike Scarcella; editing by Leigh Jones)
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