The European Commission had already made initial inquiries about the deal, reportedly asking my competitors Microsoft On its cloud gaming business and whether it could make Call of Duty unwatchable on other platforms.

According to a new report from Politico, Microsoft had a midnight deadline on October 31 to provide all the evidence and commitments to the European Union that would help alleviate any concerns it had about the deal, and sources familiar with the matter said Microsoft failed to do so. So it's likely that a second, more in-depth phase of the investigation will be launched soon.

If the European Commission now wants to move forward with the second phase, it must formally announce it before November 8, as the Microsoft deal and the acquisition of Activision Blizzard are still being considered by anti-competition watchdogs around the world.

Saudi Arabia was the first regulator to approve the deal in August, and Brazilian regulator CADE followed suit in October. However, the UK’s Capital Markets Authority has now formally expanded its investigation into a second phase and is in the process of inviting the public to share their views on the proposed deal before releasing its final decision on March 1, and the US Federal Trade Commission is also investigating the deal and is expected to issue its decision later this month.

Notably, last week, the XBOX boss said he believes the heavy scrutiny from regulators is “fair” and “safe” and that he remains confident the deal will be approved.