Rumor: Sony in advanced talks to acquire Take-Two Interactive

Sony could be gunning to acquire Take Two Interactive, and rumors say the company is curently engaged in "advanced board level discussions."

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Sony is apparently holding "advanced board level discussions" for a buyout with Rockstar's parent company Take Two.

A recent MarketWatch report states that Sony is currently involved in said discussions about the possible acquisition of Take-Two Interactive in the form of a "cash deal." The company is valued at around $130 per share, according to Joel Kulina of Wedbush Securities. As the news has begun circulating, Take-Two shares have begun climbing, jumping nearly 5.4% since the rumor broke.

There have been several attempts at Take-Two acquisitions over the years, but this one would be a true whopper of a buyout, second only to when EA began looking into taking over Take-Two in 2008. CEO John Riccitello had pushed for the buyout to happen with a cash bid of $26 a share, which equaled out to around $2 billion. This din't happen, obviously as Take-Two head Strauss Zelnick pooh-poohed the deal.

There's no indication that this rumor has any truth to it, however, as we're just going on what Wedbush Securities' Kulina has to say about the matter, but if it does happen be true, Sony would end up acquiring one of the industry's largest third-party publishers out there.

If Take-Two titles ended up becoming PlayStation exclusives as a result, it would certainly be something of an industry shakeup, and we may even see Red Dead Redemption come to PC in the future. But it's best not to get your hopes up just yet. We still need more details obviously before we can call it a safe bet. But we'll keep you updated on the situation as details develop. And if the deal happens to be real, you know we'll hit you back with more information then, too.

Do you think this is a deal that could feasibly go through? Be sure to let us know in the comments below. 

Senior Editor

Fueled by horror, rainbow-sugar-pixel-rushes, and video games, Brittany is a Senior Editor at Shacknews who thrives on surrealism and ultraviolence. Follow her on Twitter @MolotovCupcake and check out her portfolio for more. Like a fabulous shooter once said, get psyched!

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