Why Microsoft’s $69 billion Activision deal hinges on London not Washington

Microsoft Corp.’s $69 billion Activision Blizzard Inc. takeover faces a key decision in Britain as the nation’s merger watchdog marks its arrival as a global regulator with findings that could set the trajectory to the mega deal finalizing — or falling apart.

The Competition and Markets Authority is expected in the coming days to issue its provisional findings, signaling whether it aims to block the deal or clear it with specific remedies such as selloffs. The regulator already flagged concerns that the deal could cause competition issues in the consoles and subscriptions market, as well as the more nascent cloud gaming sector.