Just a little while ago, Take-Two announced that EA has agreed to sign a confidentiality agreement and review the object of its hostile financial affection's business plans for the next three years, turning this hostile takeover into something more ... amicable. Take-Two has also confirmed that it intends to let the clock run out on EA's $25.74 per share takeover offer, which expires today at midnight.
At face value, what this means is that EA still wants to buy Take-Two, and that the current offer still isn't reasonable to the Take-Two board. Meanwhile, the FTC will have finished its anti-trust probe on the issue this Thursday. Perhaps once EA gets a look under Take-Two's hood the two companies can come to a mutually agreed upon price to end this saga -- or some other publisher could come out of left field and scoop Take-Two up.
Take-Two Chairman Strauss Zelnick believes the company can be profitable in a non-Grand Theft Auto year. Speaking with Venture Beat, Zelnick explains that while GTA may have been the main source of profitability before, Take-Two is a different company in the wake of titles like BioShock and Carnival Games. Reportedly, the company now has "30 million-plus selling titles, 15 of which are full owned."
Depending on the nature of the content in the first GTA IV DLC (expected later this year), the company might very well see some nice cash flow from the second episode next year. We also have no idea when to expect GTA: Chinatown Wars. From what we can see, GTA is going to be on the T2 fiscal calendar in one form or another for quite some time.
With another deadline in EA's takeover bid come and gone, the industry's #2 publisher isn't quitting and has reaffirmed it still wants to gobble up Take-Two by extending its $25.74 per share offer deadline to Aug 18. EA currently has only 15% of Take-Two's stock, which translates to 11,741,339 shares. Obviously, EA needs over half the shares to complete the takeover.
Take-Two chairman Strauss Zelnick released a statement that the company's board is "100% committed to maximizing stockholder value," calling EA's bid "inadequate" and recommending stockholders not take the EA offer. He says that Take-Two is currently "engaged in meaningful discussions with multiple parties" and that some of those groups have been conducting due diligence (a fancy legal term for checking under a company's hood and making sure everything looks kosher). Meanwhile, the FTC is probing the deal over possible antitrust issues and should be finished by Aug. 21.
Source – EA extends deadline to Aug. 18 Source – Take-Two responds to fifth extension
Yesterday we learned Strauss Zelnick, the Charmain of Take-Two and the man standing brave against the hostile EA takeover, doesn't like wearing his E3 badge. While waiting to see 2K's latest offerings, the very polished Zelnick, who looks identical to his head-shot above, walked in and handed his badge off to the lady behind the desk exclaiming, "I hate wearing these things!"
Dude, we're totally with you! But, we're not the Strauss Zelnick. We'd love to join you in solidarity, but then security would probably kick us out.
In a few hours, the third deadline in Electronic Arts' takeover bid for Take-Two Interactive will pass. GamePolitics has a pretty good roundup of speculation stories regarding the deal; meanwhile, we've also heard from Forbes and go-to analyst guru Michael Pachter on the situation.
Take-Two reported that EA only controlled 8% of the company's stock following the last deadline. We expect a press release from EA bright and early tomorrow morning about its next move and a response from Take-Two a little thereafter.
Take-Two is appealing to stockholders not to consider EA's early-morning all cash tender offer, which pitched a purchase of the company's stock at $26 a share (a 4.4% premium over yesterday's closing price). The Take-Two board states it will review and consider EA's offer and, within 10 business days, advice stockholders of the board's position on the matter along with its reasoning.
The 10 day "please wait" request from the Take-Two board is still way within the April 11 deadline given by EA on its $26 per share offer to stockholders. EA wants Take-Two and it wants it bad.
With Take-Two Executive Chairman Strauss Zelnick having thoroughly rejected EA's initial buyout offer, the Madden and Burnout publisher has redirected its corporate Katamari at Take-Two shareholders. EA has announced the commencement of a tender offer for all of the currently outstanding shares of common stock of Take-Two Interactive Software at $26 per share. Valued at approximately $2 billion, the offer reportedly represents a 64% premium over Take-Two's closing stock price on February 15, the company's last trading day before EA began its increasingly aggressive financial courtship. Compared to Wednesday's stock price, it constitutes a 4.4% premium.
Barring extension, the tender offer is good until midnight EST on Friday, April 11, 2008. EA CEO John Riccitiello described the offer as "a great opportunity for Take-Two shareholders" and as a a way to "maximize the value" of their investment. "For EA shareholders, the combination would add additional intellectual properties to our already strong portfolio and welcome Take-Two's talented creative teams to the great development organization we've built at EA," he concluded.
Will shareholders deem this offer welcomed financial assistance or unwanted financial insistence? We'll have to wait and see.
Take-Two is not only fighting off an EA takeover now, but also a shareholder lawsuit alleging the company's management hid the EA buyout to enrich their own bank accounts. The suit lays out that days after Take-Two received the buyout offer from EA, the management approved a significant increase in compensation if a merger or takeover occurred. In terms of dollars, it means that Strauss Zelnick's ZelnickMedia, which currently manages Take-Two, would make out with $16.5 million dollars, up from $3.8 million, if the company is sold.
Securities and Exchange Commission documents also show that Take-Two has created a severance plan for employees who could lose their jobs in a takeover. Employees will receive 1.5 times their salary and a bonus for 18 months. Observers note this is merely a "defensive move" to keep employees focused on their jobs and not looking for other work during the upheaval.
No thanks, we don't need Jack. So says publisher EA, having rejected Florida's attorney at lawl, Jack Thompson, and his recent offer to assist in the attempted buyout of Grand Theft Auto publisher, Take-Two. In an impassioned letter, the spirited lawyer and friend of Mass Effect threw his support behind EA's (thus far unsuccessful) maneuver, claiming he would be "delighted" to help "evict the [Strauss] Zelnick Trojan Horse from within Take-Two's corporate walls."
Responding via e-mail (posted by GamesIndustry.biz), EA's Mariam Sughayer politely turns down the offer, saying, "In response to your offer to assist in the proposed acquisition of Take-Two, we would strongly prefer that you not get involved in this matter." Sughayer goes on to cite Thompson's past behavior towards gaming, "including false claims about content in [EA's] games," as a source of enmity, rendering any possible collaboration "impossible."
Take-Two Executive Chairman Strauss Zelnick continues to hold the line against EA's buyout offer, repeating once again the company still isn't interested. In a Q&A with The Hollywood Report, Zelnick believes that consolidation is likely to continue in the industry, but he would like Take-Two to remain an "independent company."
We'll have to wait and see if it's just lip service, but Zelnick actually says a few things that stray from the well-paved path we've seen from EA and (ever-increasingly) Activision. He finds pride in the progress made over the last 10 months since taking over the company and then commits the video game executive version of shock-and-awe by saying, "Does consolidation create better games for consumers? Does it create better careers for the creatives? Those questions are just as important. If all stakeholders aren't taken care of, then none of the stakeholders will benefit." If Take-Two survives what some analysts say is the inevitability of an EA buyout, and Zelnick sticks with that line of thinking, we may have to send him a Valentine's Day card next year. We'll have to find out if he prefers flowers or chocolates?
Apparently, it didn't take them very long to consider Electronic Arts' somewhat hostile buyout proposal -- Take-Two's Board of Directors just responded to the offer with a press release of their own, stating that EA CEO John Riccitiello's proposal was "inadequate in multiple respects and not in the best interests of Take-Two's stockholders."
While EA's proposal listed Grand Theft Auto IV as a primary reason for the merger, as Riccitiello claimed EA could lend their help during the game's quickly approaching release, Strauss Zelnick, Take-Two's executive chairman, listed GTAIV as the primary reason why they wouldn't want to merge at this point in time, fully expecting to increase their overall value when the game hits store shelves come April 29.
Zelnick's laundry list of reasons why the buyout wouldn't benefit his company can be found on the press release. For now, let us rejoice in the postponement of the seemingly inevitable future where one superconglomerated gaming publisher/developer controls all game releases on the planet.
Update: MTV Multiplayer's Stephen Totilo just had a chat with industry guru Michael Pachter, who claims that this probably isn't the end of the ordeal, and that EA will eventually get their way -- though it might not happen for a while.
We wish we had large friendly letters in our font arsenal that said "Don't Panic," but we don't. Gamers (and many publishers) took relief in knowing Grand Theft Auto IV was delayed and not entering this already over-stuffed holiday game release schedule. Although now, Take-Two chairman Strauss Zelnick is saying that they aren't committing to a release date until they're "utterly convinced" the game is ready.
If Take-Two were Valve or Blizzard we wouldn't even take notice of this, but for the previously fiscally fallible Take-Two to go from a launch window of February to April '08 to this waffling statement makes us raise one eyebrow. Don't get us wrong, we want the game to be "done" before they send it out the door, but GTA IV should have been "done" months ago and this isn't really par for the course with Take-Two. Who knows, maybe things have really changed over there? All we can say is we've lost a launch window and that's enough to make us wonder what's really going on.
GamePolitics is reporting that Take-Two Chairman Strauss Zelnick and Jack Thompson recently had a rendezvous in New York. There are very few details on what actually occurred at the meeting. All that GP knows is Zelnick asked for the meeting and Thompson acknowledged that it occurred. If you're just joining us, let's just say that Take-Two and Thompson have history.
Was Zelnick trying to bury the hatchet? Did he try to pay Jack off? Or were they conspiring to create their next brilliant marketing scheme to sell millions of extra copies of Manhunt 2 and GTA IV? Only their waiter and maybe the bartender at The Palm, Sardi's, and later in the evening, Splash, know for sure. GP thinks Zelnick was getting a feel for "'Take Two's most abiding critic' ... who has vowed to bring the company down." All we can hope is that one of the guys was wearing a wire, because that's one conversation we'd really like to hear with no real lawyers present.
