EA extends offer for Take-Two but wants
Electronic Arts Inc. said Friday it extended its $2 billion offer for Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. by a week, but added the provision that a "poison pill" adopted earlier in the week by Take-Two be cancelled.
Redwood City-based EA (NASDAQ: ERTS) said it would at least need a promise that the poison pill won’t apply to its current takeover attempt. The attempt to counter a hostile takeover could mean new shares were issued, thus driving up the costs of a takeover.
"The actions of the Take-Two board may increase the risk for their stockholders by delaying a potential transaction," Owen Mahoney, EA’s senior vice president of corporate development, said in a statement. "We continue to believe that our $26 per share offer price is full and fair, and that a transaction between Take-Two and EA is the most compelling combination financially, strategically and operationally for all parties."
EA’s offer for New York-based Take-Two (NASDAQ: TTWO) is now set to expire on April 18 payday loan cash advance loan. About 5,000 shares of Take-Two had been tendered to EA by the end of Thursday, the company said.
Earlier in the week, Take-Two — which publishes the popular "Grand Theft Auto" franchise — urged shareholders to reject EA’s offer but said it would be open to discussion after the fourth version of the game is released.
Take-Two Chairman Strauss Zelnick said the poison pill would "ensure that the Take-Two board has adequate time to consider all strategic alternatives for maximizing value for Take-Two stockholders. The agreement will not, and is not intended to, prevent a takeover of the company on terms that are fair to and in the best interests of all stockholders."
Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal