Again, CMA is not investigating what matters for gamers or not, but investing what market hold the entity has, if they are likely to abuse it and if the acquisition would make the market hold stronger.
In the case of consoles, their own argument is that no, the market hold would not grow stronger.
In the case of cloud gaming, their argument is that Microsoft already have a strong hold on the market (in the UK) and the acquisition would likely lead to a stronger hold.
Xbox as a console and Windows as a OS and nothing to do with the case they're making.
> This honestly reeks of an analysis done by outsiders that don't actually understand the industry. On the other hand, this consolidation also sucks to see.
Yes, because they are not experts in the gaming industry, they are experts in the industry of businesses in general, and monopolies.
Same could be said about your own argument, it reeks of an analysis done by someone who have no grasp on wider markets and monopolies, but happens to have knowledge about gaming to some degree.
I guess what we disagree on is that conclusion. "Cloud gaming" is not a real market. It's a subsection of the larger gaming market, it will never grow much bigger than it currently is, and by the reports own admission it would be against Microsoft's interests go for anti competitive moves. Unless there's some miscommunication around what "cloud gaming" is, I don't see how their justification makes sense.
On the other hand, while this aquisition might not strengthen the console market, it would go a long way in preventing Microsoft from exiting the market. If Microsoft exits the market that will be a huge blow to gaming, and I would hope regulators can see that.
In the case of consoles, their own argument is that no, the market hold would not grow stronger.
In the case of cloud gaming, their argument is that Microsoft already have a strong hold on the market (in the UK) and the acquisition would likely lead to a stronger hold.
Xbox as a console and Windows as a OS and nothing to do with the case they're making.
> This honestly reeks of an analysis done by outsiders that don't actually understand the industry. On the other hand, this consolidation also sucks to see.
Yes, because they are not experts in the gaming industry, they are experts in the industry of businesses in general, and monopolies.
Same could be said about your own argument, it reeks of an analysis done by someone who have no grasp on wider markets and monopolies, but happens to have knowledge about gaming to some degree.