Take-Two: EA's Extended Offer Still 'Inadequate'

Following the extension of EA's offer to acquire its rival publisher, executives from Take-Two have stood firm that the current proposal is still 'inadequate' and contrary to stockholders' best interests. The deadline extension is the third from Electronic Arts, and will end June 16th. Despite calls from several analysts, Electronic Arts has failed to increase the offer, which remains at $25.74 per share – slightly less than that originally offered. In response, Take-Two chairman Strauss Zenick has repeated his stance that the "highly conditional proposal" has already been "thoroughly reviewed and unanimously determined to be inadequate and contrary to the best interests of Take-Two's stockholders." "As such, the recommendation of our Board of Directors that stockholders not tender their shares to EA remains unchanged," he continued. "The Board is committed to maximizing stockholder value and is exploring all strategic alternatives to do so." Take-Two CEO Ben Feder concurred, saying EA's offer "fails to compensate our stockholders for our exceptional portfolio of intellectual property, world-class creative resources, and our successful revitalization initiatives." Feder points to the recent "record-breaking sales performance of Grand Theft Auto IV in its first week of release," and its new deal with Universal to create a BioShock feature film, as "demonstrating how Take-Two is delivering value from our powerful and wholly-owned intellectual property." "The small number of shares tendered into EA's offer to date demonstrates that our stockholders agree with what our Board has maintained from the beginning: EA's proposal undervalues our Company," he concluded.