While Electronic Arts Inc. formally took its offer for Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. public on Sunday, conversations between the two video game publishers actually began a year ago, according to EA executive Warren Jenson.
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Jenson, EA's chief financial officer, says that last year's talks cooled when EA chief John Ricitello decided to clean his own house. EA re-established contact with Take-Two in December, and after that informal approach was rebuffed in January, the company made a formal $25 a share offer on Feb. 6. Take-Two spurned that overture on Feb. 15. The current $26 a share offer was made on Feb. 19 and rejected on Feb. 22, leading to Sunday's public announcement.
This chronology runs counter to Deal Journal's assertion that ZelnickMedia, which has been running Take-Two since March 2007, "cleaned up enough so that Electronic Arts is an interested bidder today, which it wasn't a year ago."
In fact, Jenson says that EA can do a better job running Take-Two. "We're seeking to eliminate the burden of the stormy umbrella that is Take-Two management and cultivate the diamonds that are Rockstar, Firaxis and 2K," Jenson said. Rockstar, Firaxis and 2K are the game developers responsible for creating such hits as "Grand Theft Auto," "BioShock" and "Civilization," and Take-Two is the parent responsible for publishing those games. To be certain, Jenson was referring to Take-Two's history of management issues that predate Zelnick's takeover last year, and not the propriety of recent merger-related changes to Zelnick's compensation package.
For more of The Deal's interview with Jenson, see The Daily Deal and TheDeal.com. - Matthew Wurtzel
See story from Deal Journal
See story about EA's offer from TheDeal.com
See story from TheDeal.com about activists taking control of Take-Two
See Tech Confidential: Electronic Arts CFO hints it may get tough with Take-Two
See Dealscape: Meet the shared shareholders of EA, Take-Two
See Dealscape: Ubisoft as Take-Two's hero? Not so fast
See Tech Confidential: A second look at EA's Take-Two offer
See Corporate Dealmaker: EA's massive Take-Two offer could give Hollywood a BioShock
See Take-Two Dealwatch from Dealscape
