Take-Two completes purchase of mobile game company Zynga for $12.7B

Take-Two Interactive has completed its acquisition of mobile game developer Zynga, the company announced today.

The intent to purchase the developer known for Farmville and Words with Friends was first announced in January. Zynga common investors received $3.50 in cash and 0.0406 shares of Take-Two common stock each share.

The $12.7B purchase now takes Take-Two Interactive into the world of mobile gaming. Starting today, the parent company of the Grand Theft Auto franchise also owns the family-friend mobile game franchises Farmville and Words With Friends.

“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,” said Strauss Zelnick, chairman and CEO at Take-Two Interactive. “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. Each of our teams has a strong history of operational execution, and together, we expect that we will enhance our financial profile through greater scale and profitability, paving the way for us to deliver strong shareholder value.”

“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,” stated Frank Gibeau, CEO a Zynga. “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.”

The $12.7B announcement by Take-Two Interactive became the highest ever by a gaming company for a short time. A week later, Microsoft announced its plans to acquire Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion.

[Source]: Take-Two Interactive: Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. Completes Combination with Zynga Inc. – [Archive].