NEWS - Thursday, September 4, 2003
Take-Two Acquires TDK - Max Payne 2 Info
A financial report on Yahoo biz reports that Take-Two has announced an agreement to purchase TDK Mediactive, Inc. (OTC BB: TDKM), a California based publisher of a rapidly expanding portfolio of video game franchises based on popular licensed properties, including Shrek, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Haunted Mansion, The Land Before Time, Robotech, The Muppets, Corvette and Masters of the Universe. For the fiscal year ended March 31, 2003, TDK reported revenue of $42.2 million, with a net loss of $8.3 million, or $0.36 per share. Under the terms of the agreement, Take-Two will purchase TDK Mediactive for approximately $22.7 million, consisting of (1) $0.55 per share for each of the 23,005,885 shares outstanding (approximately $12.6 million); (2) purchase of debt of approximately $9.9 million ($1.9 million in cash and $8 million in restricted shares of common stock of Take-Two, or approximately 270,000 shares); and (3) approximately $0.2 million to retire outstanding stock options. Take-Two expects the acquisition of TDK Mediactive to close in the first week of November, with the closing subject to customary terms and conditions. Take-Two and TDK Mediactive have also entered into a separate agreement providing Take-Two with the exclusive North American distribution rights for certain TDK titles on various platforms, including The Haunted Mansion, currently scheduled for launch in mid-October in anticipation of the Thanksgiving release of the Disney feature film. Among other products, the distribution agreement also includes Star Trek: Shattered Universe and Corvette, both scheduled for launch in late October. In its third quarter of fiscal 2003, Take-Two’s Rockstar Games introduced additional extensions to its blockbuster Grand Theft Auto franchise, which has sold over 25 million units worldwide since the introduction of the brand. Rockstar shipped Grand Theft Auto: Vice City for the PC and the PlayStation®2 Greatest Hits version of Grand Theft Auto 3. Rockstar also released the highly anticipated Midnight Club 2 for the Xbox(TM) and PC, a sequel to the multi-million unit selling franchise. Strong sales of Midnight Club 2 for PlayStation®2, released late in the second quarter, continued into the third quarter. Rockstar Games’ products planned for release in the fourth quarter include the launch of Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne, the sequel to the hit franchise that has sold over 4 million units since its debut in 2001. The title will launch on PC, and will be in stores in North America on October 15th, with PlayStation®2 and Xbox(TM) versions planned for release in the first quarter. As announced today, Rockstar is introducing a double pack of Grand Theft Auto 3 and Grand Theft Auto: Vice City for both the Xbox(TM) and PlayStation®2. The Grand Theft Auto double pack will be in stores in North America on October 22nd for PlayStation®2 and on November 4th for Xbox(TM). Rockstar also looks forward to the late September release of Grand Theft Auto 3 for PlayStation®2 and PC in Japan, under a license agreement with Capcom Co., Ltd. Gathering’s lineup of titles for the fourth quarter includes Railroad Tycoon 3 and Hidden & Dangerous 2, sequels to the popular franchises which have each sold over 1 million units, and Space Colony, a new title, all for the PC. Gotham Games expects to ship Conflict: Desert Storm II and Starsky & Hutch, both in North America only, for PlayStation®2, PC and Xbox(TM). Gotham is also launching MTV’s Celebrity Deathmatch for PlayStation®2, PC, Xbox(TM), GameCube and PlayStation®. Click here to read the rest.Source: http://finance.yahoo.com/
