Take Two board rejects EA’s offer, mergers before GTA IV release

The board of directors of Take-Two has once again dismissed EA’s offer and termed it “inadequate in multiple respects.” But it remains open to other possibilities like a merger with a third party or EA. It has advised the company’s shareholders not to offer their shares to EA.

The board has ruled out the possibility of any mergers before the release of GTA IV (April 29, 2008). However, before the game’s release, it is ready to hold talks about any mergers or partnerships with other parties. Strauss Zelnick, Take Two’s chairman, branded EA’s offer as opportunistic. “Our Board, after careful review, has unanimously determined that Electronic Arts’ offer continues to provide insufficient value and remains opportunistically timed to capture the value of the upcoming Grand Theft Auto IV launch at the expense of our stockholders,” he said in a corporate statement.

The board of directors has put in place a Stockholders Rights Agreement to safeguard the company’s stakeholders from any unsolicited takeover attempts like EA’s.

Editor’s Note: TakeTwo has also posted a message to its shareholders on its website explaining why the proposal was rejected and asking them to read through EA’s entire proposal. You can also listen to Zlenik’s and Executive Vice President Cindi Buckwalter’s presentation at the 2008 Smid Cap Conference made March 26, 2008. It is approx. 37 minutes long.

Read [Game Daily] Site [TakeTwo Value] Listen [T2's 2008 Smid Cap Conference Presentation]