The European Commission has approved the proposed $55 billion takeover of Electronic Arts by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, alongside Silver Lake and Affinity Partners, concluding that it does not create competition concerns in EU markets. The decision is significant because it removes a major regulatory hurdle for one of the games industry’s largest-ever buyouts, although approval elsewhere is still required.

The Commission said the deal would have only a limited effect on competition and therefore cleared it under the normal EU merger-review procedure without conditions. In the United States, 46 lawmakers have asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate possible effects on workers and competition; the article also highlights concerns over EA becoming majority-owned by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, citing Saudi Arabia’s human-rights record.