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Take-Two Now Owns Zynga As Part Of Second-Biggest Deal In Gaming History

The GTA parent company has spent almost $13 billion to buy the FarmVille company in a deal topped only by Microsoft's proposal to acquire Activision Blizzard.

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Take-Two, the parent company of GTA developer Rockstar Games, has completed one of the biggest acquisitions in the history of video games. Take-Two's previously announced $12.7 billion acquisition of FarmVille company Zynga is now complete.

As previously announced, Zynga stockholders are getting $3.50 in cash for each share they own and 0.0406 shares of Take-Two stock for every Zynga stock they hold.

Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said in a statement that this deal is a "pivotal" play for the company to help it make even more money from mobile gaming. Mobile is the fastest-growing part of gaming, Zelnick said, and buying Zynga gives the company access to FarmVille and many other popular and lucrative franchises. Many other publishers, including EA, are spending billions in the mobile market because mobile gaming is bigger and more popular than console and PC.

Zynga boss Frank Gibeau said, "We are eager to continue building an unparalleled portfolio of games that will reach broader markets and lead to continued growth for this next chapter of Zynga's history."

Take-Two's buyout proposal for Zynga had a 45-day "go-shop" provision, during which Zynga could look for a better deal from a different company. Whether or not Zynga made any serious or significant moves with any other potential suitors during this time is unknown.

Take-Two's deal to buy Zynga for $12.7 billion, which was proposed earlier this year, was the most expensive deal in the history of video games by a large margin until Microsoft--just days later--proposed to buy Activision Blizzard for $75 billion.

In addition to its growing mobile games portfolio, Take-Two's Rockstar Games is currently developing the next Grand Theft Auto game, but it's not expected to be released anytime soon.

Biggest Acquisitions In Gaming History

  • Microsoft - Activision Blizzard (proposed) -- $75 billion
  • Take-Two - Zynga -- $12.7 billion
  • Tencent - Supercell -- $10.2 billion
  • Microsoft - Bethesda -- $8.1 billion

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DEVILTAZ35

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Edited By DEVILTAZ35

So why are they allowed to do this so easily when Microsoft has to keep answering on Activision purchase? . Double standards.

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jenovaschilld

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@deviltaz35: Microsoft will acquire Activision no problem, but the legal problems is with Activision Blizzard solely. It is complicated as you have 3 corporations, with AB at the center representing the largest IPs. So basically AB did not disclose these corporate mergers with it stock holders and board members. Board members also exercised insider trading, as well as deals to insulate CEO Kotick and certain board members as well. These can be settled before or after the acquisition by MS, and will or should not effect the value of AB once it is under MS. Any of these suits should only effect certain people, not the IPs that will then be part of MS publishing. Bad actors should be punished, that is good for consumers.

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