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Geek Culture / EA is attempting a buyout of Take 2!

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Jeku
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Posted: 25th Feb 2008 05:58 Edited at: 25th Feb 2008 05:58
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http://www.destructoid.com/ea-strongarms-take-two-goes-public-update--72008.phtml

EA offers $2 billion for Take 2, and Take 2 declines saying it's undervalued. Does anyone think EA will make another offer? EA has ~$4 billion in cash reserves and I wouldn't put it past them to make another offer.

Wow. The EA steam roller isn't stopping anytime soon. Anyone else think this is a good idea? The chaos in me would like to see this happen, but the consumer in me would be worried because 2K sports would be no more, and it would be a virtual monopoly in the sports game market. Anyways, this would be very big, big news if it were to succeed!

Take 2 owns 2K (Bioshock, 2K Sports, etc.), and Rockstar (GTA obviously). There are many other properties under this company but those are the biggest I can think of.


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Antidote
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Posted: 25th Feb 2008 06:27
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From what I've read Take 2 has no intention of letting EA buy them out until the release of GTA IV. Personally I think Take 2 is worth more than 2 billion, and I really don't think it's a good idea. It's nothing against EA, I just like to see more competition.

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Jeku
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Posted: 25th Feb 2008 06:34
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But what other AAA games do they own? GTA and Bioshock. That's pretty much it. Once GTA is out they will have a long time before they release another title that will sell as much (until GTA V of course).


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Jess T
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Posted: 25th Feb 2008 06:49
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If they're confident that they're worth more than $2billion, then it doesn't matter what other titles they have. Clearly the ones they have now are the ones that are bringing in the dough!

I think EA should back-off from buying out all the competition - It's not healthy for the development of games and new ideas, etc!

Nintendo DS & Dominos :: DS Dominos
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Jeku
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Posted: 25th Feb 2008 07:02
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Quote: "I think EA should back-off from buying out all the competition - It's not healthy for the development of games and new ideas, etc!"


Why is it not healthy? Take 2 is a large publisher too. I doubt most of the developers would be largely affected.


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Jess T
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Posted: 25th Feb 2008 09:20
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Except that with the two merging, it would mean that EA has, as you said, exclusive sports games.

Who can challenge EA except another big company? Ie, Take2.

If they keep challenging eachother to try and make the best games, then they'll keep getting stronger and better. But, if there's only one, they'll just keep using the one game, rebranding it, and reselling it, instead of anything innovative.

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Nicholas Thompson
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Posted: 25th Feb 2008 10:01
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Jess has hit the nail on the head there... You MUST have other companies challenge you. If you dont, the market becomes stale with re-releases of the same product. At least with two or more companies attempting the same project idea, you get slight variations, for example, football (soccer). The two big boys are Fifa and Pro Evo; and the two groups of people of them are like the Marmite market - you either like one or the other.

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Jeku
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Posted: 25th Feb 2008 10:02 Edited at: 25th Feb 2008 10:03
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Well there's still the other competition for non-sports games ---- i.e. Actiblivendivision, or whatever it's now called

With sports games, there are a few from other companies too, just the EA and 2K Sports are the largest.


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Digital Awakening
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Posted: 25th Feb 2008 11:05
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I agree with most replies. This is not good for competition.

In the end this will be about what the Take2 shareholders think. If the offer is high enough, they will sell. What you have to calculate is whether this one time payoff and the investments you can do with it now exceeds the dividend from the Take2 shares/stock combined with a future sell price.

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Zappo
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Posted: 25th Feb 2008 11:43 Edited at: 25th Feb 2008 12:03
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If I remember correctly, Rockstar's contract with Take 2 is up in February 2009 at which point they may decide to go solo (like Bungie did from Microsoft). Take 2 must either be expecting a huge income from Rockstar between now and then, i.e. from GTA IV, or are expecting Rockstar to continue to be part of Take 2 (which is a big possibility after shelling out a $25 million bonus package to certain GTA developers to keep them on board).
I understand EA also made an $860 million deal at the end of last year for VG Holding Corp. which includes BioWare (Mass Effect) and Pandemic Studios (Mercenaries).

I too feel that the more individual companies there are, the better. More competition means more progress and variation. If the entire industry ends up being controlled by two 'big boys' then they can dictate what we pay and what we play. It may get to a stage where smaller independents just cannot compete because its too risky to take on the megacorps, or because distributors/shops end up with exclusivity deals or incentives that cannot be matched.

EDIT: I do find it quite amusing that Take2 have published the EA letter on their site which contains this paragraph:
Quote: "We do not intend to make this letter public and our offer will automatically terminate and be withdrawn in its entirety if any portion of this letter, or the existence of discussions between EA and Take-Two relating to a possible business combination, are disclosed to any person other than the directors and officers of Take-Two and its legal and financial advisors."

They definitely don't want to even discuss it until after GTA IV is released.


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Van B
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Posted: 25th Feb 2008 13:14
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Isn't this like offering to go halvesies on a lottery ticket, only after discovering that it's a winner worth 6 million bucks .

I really hope Take2 forget the whole idea, I also hope that Rockstar break away and become their own entity. I mean it's GTA we're talking, the biggest multi-platform game there is, but can you imagine what horrors EA would impose on it...

* Every car would have a turbo boost.
* Every explosion would go in slow motion, and you'll be able to control your guy in mid air.
* The sound track would consist of chart crud and flavour-of-month artists.
* Instead of 3 years, there would be a new GTA game every year, each one slightly different/worse than the last - this will be vital as the games 'cast' get new hairstyles and the mindless music stops being fashionable.

I really don't want Rockstar moving away from Scotland, they're like the only game developers left up here!.


less is more, but if less is more how you keeping score?
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Zappo
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Posted: 25th Feb 2008 14:47
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On a related note, there have been several news postings today about an article in Play Magazine where Rockstar have apparently said that future games (after GTA IV) might be PS3 exclusive. If Sony have signed a deal with them like they did for the PS2 then its great news for PS3 owners, but it would have to be for a huge wad of cash to make it worth their while. This might be affecting Take 2's decision too.
More info here:
http://www.dbtechno.com/gaming/2008/02/25/rockstar-games-beyond-gta-iv-to-be-ps3-exclusive/
and here:
http://www.slashgear.com/rumor-rockstar-games-going-ps3-exclusive-2510425.php


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Digital Awakening
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Posted: 25th Feb 2008 15:26
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Depends on the size of the wad compared to the earnings of non-PS3 IV sales. Or maybe Sony consider buying Rockstar when their Take2 contract ends?

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Samoz83
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Posted: 25th Feb 2008 18:47 Edited at: 25th Feb 2008 18:57
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As long as EA don't do what they did to Westwood, Bullfrog and all the other companies they have brought then ruin them. I feel its getting silly now they seem to be buying up everyone they can and then making games every year only slightly different from the year before. Also if they did buy T2 all of the PS3 ports would be rubbish like they have been so far from EA.

BTW did they close EA UK in Guildford? i heard they were closing a EA UK but that one is still open

Never mind I worked it out they shut down the Chertsey one

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Jeku
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Posted: 25th Feb 2008 21:41 Edited at: 25th Feb 2008 21:41
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The new EA CEO has already publicly admitted and apologized for EA's former transgressions with Bullfrog, Origin, and Westwood. I am confident EA is turning over a new leaf, but if you'd asked me a year ago I would have disagreed with the purchase. Exciting to see what happens regardless Take 2's stock has shot through the roof today!


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Zombie 20
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Posted: 26th Feb 2008 00:41
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Buisness, its getting interesting isn't it?


Coffee coffee coffee coffee coffee coffee cappacino, JAVA!
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Libervurto
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Posted: 26th Feb 2008 19:36
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I would absolutely hate it if EA bought out Take2; nothing to do with EA it's just a horrible prospect to live in a world with ONE games company, and that's the way it will be if EA get their way.
Aren't there laws against monopolization?

Also I think there's a certain amount of bare-faced cheek in this offer, almost like it was a spur-of-the-moment idea to put in a bid before GTA IV comes out. It makes EA seem a bit silly.

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greenlig
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Posted: 28th Feb 2008 06:03
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@ Jeku - Have you ever met/heard of a Craig Caldwell? He worked for EA for some time. I assume he was in animation or art or something because he worked at Disney as well. Just curious, as he is the Head of my Faculty at Uni. He's taking a few lectures during my Games Design Degree.

greenlig

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Jeku
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Posted: 28th Feb 2008 07:10
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Never heard of him, sorry, but then again we have almost 2000 employees at our location alone (EA Canada).


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greenlig
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Posted: 28th Feb 2008 14:05
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Yer true, I thought that might be the case. Anyhoo he said he loved the Vancouver studios.

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