Chinese tech giant Baidu has abandoned its planned $3.6 billion acquisition of domestic rival JOYY’s live-streaming business in the country.

The news was announced on Monday in a filing with the Hong Kong Stock exchange, in which Baidu said that certain conditions had not been met by the 31 December deadline. These conditions included obtaining “necessary regulatory approvals.”

The deal for the YY Live business was announced in 2020 as part of the search engine giant’s attempts to diversify its revenue streams.

However reports emerged in 2021 that China’s antitrust regulator was unlikely to approve the deal at a time when Beijing was attempting to crack down on big tech dominance in the country.

JOYY, which has 277 million monthly active users, said on Monday that it is seeking legal advice and will consider all options.

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