Take-Two Spent Over $11 Million To Defend Against EA Takeover
See Full ImageMost gamers were happy to see Take-Two Interactive fend off Electronic Arts' takeover attempts earlier this year; it was like rooting for David vs. Goliath and it seemed like the right thing to do. But business isn't always so simple.
According to GameDaily, Take-Two spent around $11 million in fending off EA during the larger publisher's advances. EA was offering $25.74 per share while Take-Two continually maintained they were worth more than that, and as evidenced by a recent SEC filing, Take-Two spent that large chunk of cash to defend themselves. So said a Take-Two representative, the $11 million in costs was "related to the EA offer and our strategic review process." Now, some will say it was well worth the cost to remain independent and keep EA away, but don't tell that to Take-Two investors. The Grand Theft Auto publisher posted a $15 million loss for the fourth quarter, and that stock that was once north of $26/share (just after GTAIV launched), is now trading at just over $8/share. ...EA's $25.75/share offer isn't looking so bad now, is it? Of course, Take-Two does expect to rebound once more of their blockbuster titles hits shelves in 2009, but for the time being, investors aren't likely to be happy with the decision to defy EA. Then again, hindsight is always 20/20.
For the time being, the economy is causing a few problems for most publishers, so that certainly affects Take-Two to some extent. But on the other hand, one can only wonder where everyone involved would be if Take-Two had accepted EA's bid...
12/22/2008 John Shepard
Put this on your webpage or blog:
Email this to a friend
Follow PSX Extreme on Twitter
Comments (15 posts)
MetalHead09
Monday, December 22, 2008 @ 10:28:49 PM
Reply
0 up, 0 down
Qubex
Monday, December 22, 2008 @ 11:06:13 PM
Q!
"i aM hOMe"
0 up, 0 down
MetalHead09
Tuesday, December 23, 2008 @ 11:16:42 AM
0 up, 0 down
LightShow
Monday, December 22, 2008 @ 10:40:08 PM
Reply
Mercs 2 because it illustrates exactly why people don't like EA. I'm not sure what the real story is, but the whole title feels rushed and is plagued by general lack of polish; problems assigned (by the public) to publishers getting impatient and rushing a product out the door.
And then I think of BFBC (and along with this, Burnout Paradise), because it proves to me that either a) a studio can work within the time frame that seems to cause troubles to other studios or b) that EA knows who won't accept bullying to meet a deadline. Either way they were great games, and i play both regularly.
I wish Pandemic would have offered a better product. One can only hope that Mercs 3 will satiate my desires for quality, graphics, AND gratuitous destruction.
0 up, 0 down
Scarecrow
Tuesday, December 23, 2008 @ 12:04:18 AM
Reply
EA go owned
Last edited by Ben Dutka PSXE on 12/23/2008 12:42:40 AM
0 up, 0 down
SHADOW [Moderator]
Tuesday, December 23, 2008 @ 12:53:15 AM
Last edited by SHADOW on 12/23/2008 12:53:37 AM
1 up, 0 down
slayerkillemall
Tuesday, December 23, 2008 @ 4:06:51 AM
Reply
0 up, 0 down
GamerKid123
Tuesday, December 23, 2008 @ 6:28:28 AM
Reply
2 up, 0 down
Deleted User
Tuesday, December 23, 2008 @ 7:17:50 AM
Reply
I just pray they don't ruin a perfect formula.
0 up, 0 down
Aftab
Tuesday, December 23, 2008 @ 8:01:35 AM
Reply
0 up, 0 down
MetalHead09
Tuesday, December 23, 2008 @ 11:19:57 AM
Reply
1 up, 0 down
Aftab
Wednesday, December 24, 2008 @ 8:20:47 AM
Last edited by Aftab on 12/24/2008 8:22:17 AM
0 up, 0 down
seismictech
Tuesday, December 23, 2008 @ 12:25:35 PM
Reply
knowing EA, they would probably force rockstar to make a new GTA every year to exhaust sales like with madden. that wouldn't work in my opinion.
1 up, 0 down
WorldEndsWithMe
Reply
Monday, December 22, 2008 @ 10:15:46 PM