REDWOOD CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Electronic Arts Inc. (“EA”) (NASDAQ: ERTS - News) today announced that it has proposed to acquire Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (“Take-Two”) (NASDAQ: TTWO - News) in an all-cash merger valued at approximately $2.0 billion.
EA’s proposal of $26 per share in cash represents a premium of 64 percent over Take-Two’s closing stock price on Feb. 15th, the last trading day before EA sent its revised proposal to Take-Two, and a 63 percent premium over Take-Two’s 30-day trailing average price over the thirty trading days ending on that date.
EA’s proposal was contained in a letter sent on Feb. 19th by EA Chief Executive Officer John Riccitiello to Strauss Zelnick, Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors of Take-Two. The Take-Two Board’s subsequent rejection of the EA proposal led to EA’s decision to release the letter and bring its proposal to the attention of all Take-Two shareholders.
Mr. Riccitiello said today: “Our all-cash proposal is a unique opportunity for Take-Two shareholders to realize immediate value at a substantial premium, while creating long-term value for EA shareholders. Take-Two’s game designers would also benefit from EA’s financial resources, stable, game-focused management team, and strong global publishing capabilities.”
The EA letter warned that further Take-Two delay in accepting EA’s proposal could prevent Take-Two’s shareholders and other constituents from realizing its benefits. “There can be no certainty that in the future EA or any other buyer would pay the same high premium we are offering today,” Mr. Riccitiello wrote. The letter added that timely completion of the proposed transaction would allow EA’s strong publishing and distribution network to positively impact the ongoing post-launch sales of GTA IV and support the new Take-Two titles scheduled for launch later in the year and during the holiday selling season.
As noted in EA’s Feb. 19th letter, EA’s proposal is not conditioned on any financing requirement. It is, however, subject to certain customary conditions as set forth in the letter. EA’s $26 per share proposal is based on the current equity capitalization of Take-Two. Although EA indicated in the letter that its proposal was subject to negotiations commencing by Feb. 22nd, EA intends to keep its proposal open for the present to give Take-Two’s shareholders and Board of Directors further time to consider it.
They even made a website with a letter about the takeover:
Quote:
Right now, Take-Two’s future is uncertain. Take-Two’s creative teams make fantastic games and the company has gotten some good interim support from a group of new corporate leaders. But Take-Two is facing a host of threats and – with or without combination with EA – we believe there is a strong likelihood that the company will be sold in the not-too-distant future.
Speaking to Bloomberg, NoA talisman Reggie Fils-Aime reckons that the 360's lead over the Wii in North America will disappear this year. And not just "this year", but by June. Which is not too far away! He reckons the launch of Super Smash Bros will be a big factor in this, and while I can't see the logic in that - surely the people who freaked out over every pointless Dojo update already have a Wii - the overall prediction seems watertight to anyone who's been looking at sales charts for the past 12 months. Comment (30)
Phil Harrison: Wii Install Base is over half-empty to third parties
Written by Li Cha
Thursday, 21 February 2008
Sony Computer Entertainment's worldwide studios boss Phil Harrison countered the success of Nintendo's latest console at GDC today, according to a Gamasutra report, saying that the Wii's "addressable market is only 40% of the installed base." He's talking about the prospects of third party developers, who, despite having a massive Wii customer base to sell to, have to compete with Nintendo's own software, effectively limiting the market by more than half.
That's gotta be one of the best back-handed compliments ever, I'd think, and maybe not entirely accurate. Sure, Nintendo dominates software charts with first party product, but games like Capcom's Resident Evil efforts, Mario & Sonic at the Olympics and Guitar Hero III have done pretty well for themselves on the Wii.
