EA want more than just GTA from Take 2

One of the biggest big wigs at EA has taken the time to comment on the current, impending, on/off, will they / won’t they, deal or no deal $2 billion buyout situation going on between them and Take 2. They commented that should they acquire the company they are interested in much more than one “important franchise” and the buyout has much more to offer in the “long-term” than most expect.

“We believe our offer is based on the long-term valuation of the people and franchises that make up the TTWO – not a one-time event within an important franchise,” says EA’s Mariam Sughayer, senior manager of Corporate Communications at EA. “In addition — we believe that TTWO’s price prior to our offer already reflected that this would be a global blockbuster – the stock was trading at approximately $17.”

Cowan Group analyst Doug Creutz echoed these statements, commenting, “We expect the release of the game to have a minimal impact on TTWO share price, as it continues to be driven by arbitrageurs on the likely outcome of the outstanding Electronic Arts tender offer.“