So it comes out that EA offered two billion for Take Two as a buyout offer. That’s almost twice what the stock is worth at this point. And a pretty good joke:
The timing of the bid appears to be an attempt to acquire Take-Two before it releases what is widely expected to be the top-selling game of 2008, the fourth installment of the crime thriller Grand Theft Auto.
Yeah, that’s basically the point. To offer now, months before GTA 4 releases is them basically saying, let us buy you now so you’ll be cheaper than after you release your bajillion seller game. But how does EA see themselves?
Electronic Arts said it was making its offer public to “bring its proposal to the attention of all Take-Two shareholders.” In a telephone interview on Sunday, Electronic Arts’ chief executive, John Riccitiello, said, “It is an enormous premium,” suggesting that rather than consider the offer hostile, “We think of ourselves as a ‘white knight.’ “
Riiiiiight. A ‘white knight’. We’re here to help, we promise.
This is my favorite part though:
Mr. Riccitiello said, however, he believed that Take-Two’s stock price already reflected an expectation among investors that Grand Theft Auto IV would be a success, and that Take-Two would become less valuable to E.A. after the game’s introduction than it was now.
After Take Two releases their game, it will be really expensive for us to purchase them, so we really need to buy you now. So good. So full of shit.
Take Two, much like Yahoo does when it comes to Microsoft, need to pay attention though. EA is making this public so they can be the ‘white knight’ (er, dark knight) and try to take over Take Two before GTA 4 ships. After that it will cost them a LOT more.
Really, I don’t care about it. Rockstar under EA would probably suck with yearly releases though.
-
What Would Matt Do: If I were Take Two, I’d watch my back.