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Take-Two CEO Zelnick Doubts Zynga's 'Sketchy' Metrics

Ahead of Zynga's initial public offering, Take-Two CEO Strass Zelnick spoke out against the company, saying that it does not provide enough data on user churn.

Frank Cifaldi, Contributor

November 29, 2011

1 Min Read
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Massively succesful social gaming company Zynga (FarmVille, CityVille) is ramping up for its initial public offering in the coming weeks, but a lack of data related to user churn may keep investors at bay. That's according to Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick, who spoke at length about the company at the Reuters Global Media Summit on Tuesday. "They churn quite quickly and they get new customers. That is their model," he said. "I think they have disclosure issues, I think you are seeing their acquisition costs go up, marketing costs go up and they have very high churn." According to Zelnick, the company needs to provide investors with more details on its user churn in order to give a clearer picture of its financial future, saying that the company "hasn't gone public yet because their metrics are sketchy." Reuters reported Tuesday that Zynga will embark on its IPO road show starting next week, giving a series of presentations to investors before offering shares on Nasdaq, which the company plans to do before the year is up.

About the Author

Frank Cifaldi

Contributor

Frank Cifaldi is a freelance writer and contributing news editor at Gamasutra. His past credentials include being senior editor at 1UP.com, editorial director and community manager for Turner Broadcasting's GameTap games-on-demand service, and a contributing author to publications that include Edge, Wired, Nintendo Official Magazine UK and GamesIndustry.biz, among others. He can be reached at [email protected].

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