Take-Two, one of the biggest names in video games, has completed its acquisition of the social gaming pioneer, Zynga. The blockbuster deal comes in at $12.75 billion and will expand Take-Two’s portfolio deep into the social gaming market.
Under the terms of the deal, Zynga shareholders will receive $3.50 in cash and $6.36 in shares of Take-Two for every share of Zynga stock they currently own. That number represents close to a 64 percent premium for Zynga stockholders.
The Zynga acquisition also closes an epic story of an independent video game developer that broke the social gaming market wide-open with hits like Farmville and Zynga Poker in the early days of social media. Though the company has seen its shares of ups and downs in the last decade or so, it’s continued to produce hit games. Take-Two is no stranger to hit games itself with blockbusters like Grand Theft Auto and NBA 2K already in its portfolio.
In a statement to the press, Zynga chief Frank Gibeau lauded the deal saying, “We are excited for Zynga’s next-generation mobile platform, free-to-play expertise, diverse offering of games and incredible team to join the Take-Two family. 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.”
Strauss Zelnick, chairman and CEO of Take-Two was similarly enthused adding, “We are thrilled to complete our combination with Zynga, which is a pivotal step to increase exponentially our net bookings from mobile, the fastest-growing segment in interactive entertainment, while also providing us with substantial cost synergies and revenue opportunities. As we bring together our exceptional talent, exciting pipelines of games, and industry-leading technologies and capabilities, we believe that we can take our portfolio to another level of creativity, innovation, and quality.”