The Federal Trade Commission Thursday sued Microsoft Corp. to block its planned $75 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard Inc., ATVI -1.54%decrease; red down pointing triangle taking one of its biggest shots under the Biden administration at halting a merger of technology giants.

The lawsuit sets the stage for a court challenge over the deal as Microsoft agreed as part of negotiations with the “Call of Duty” publisher to defend the acquisition against a government lawsuit.

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Progressive groups have put pressure on the FTC to block the deal—saying it would create industry stovepipes in which technology companies own lucrative content and user data, and have the ability to make money from advertising as well.

“Microsoft’s recent promises not to abuse that power by making preemptive concessions to Sony and Nintendo reinforce the underlying illegality of the original deal,” the American Economic Liberties Project’s Sarah Miller said in a statement.