Microsoft president Brad Smith met with UK finance minister Jeremy Hunt on Tuesday in an effort to unblock its $69 billion takeover of games publisher Activision Blizzard.

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) blocked the largest deal in tech history in April over concerns that Microsoft would have a monopolistic grip on the burgeoning cloud gaming market. The deal however was approved less than a month later by the European Union, with the bloc's antitrust chief praising the takeover as "pro-competitive".

Both Microsoft and Activision Blizzard appealed the CMA’s decision and reacted negatively to the block, questioning whether the UK remained open to tech firms at a time where companies have been shifting their European headquarters to cities like Dublin and Frankfurt.

Coinciding with his meeting with Hunt, Smith appeared at the techUK Tech Policy Leadership conference where he stated his confidence that a positive outcome could be reached.

Smith said: "If regulators have concerns we want to address them. If there are problems, we want to solve them. If the UK wants to impose regulatory requirements that go beyond those in the EU, we want to find ways to fulfil them."

While in London, the Microsoft president is also due to meet with officials from the CMA.

The deal is also facing stern opposition in the US, with the country’s Federal Trade Commission (FTC) taking action to block the deal on grounds that it would suppress competition.

In a separate incident, the FTC has fined Microsoft $20 million after violating children's privacy rights with information collection practices of the Xbox Live service. The fine covers violations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (COPPA), which involve “children who signed up to [the] Xbox gaming system without notifying their parents or obtaining their parents’ consent, and by illegally retaining children’s personal information.”

In particular, the FTC specified that Xbox Live users had to provide additional information including a phone number even if they indicated they were under the age of 13. By signing up, users also consented to a pre-checked agreement allowing Microsoft to send promotional messages and share their data with advertisers.

Microsoft will also be made to take additional steps to strengthen privacy protections for minors using Xbox consoles and associated services.

Dave McCarthy, Xbox’s executive in charge of player service, said that the issue stemmed from a "data retention glitch found in our system" and committed to remaining “steadfast in our commitment to safety, privacy, and security for our community”.

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