Posted Jun 18, 2007 at 08:06PM by Ceasar S. Listed in: News, Grand Theft Auto 4, Games Tags: Microsoft, Take-Two Interactive, Episodic Content
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A little while back, Take-Two Interactive made their Q2 fiscal year 2007 financial performance public, with much of the results hinting that all was not well with the company. Noting a huge sales drop of US$ 60 million, Take-Two also claimed that they were readying to undergo restructuring to make sure that they're production and development grew to financially disciplined proportions.

Take-Two gets US$ 50 million from Microsoft for episodes - Image 1 


A conference call was made just for Take-Two's financial report, and in that same conference Take-Two hinted that Grand Theft Auto IV was going episodic across all platforms - or so it seemed. Unfortunately, GTA4.net's optimism on the matter didn't pay off, as the episodic content was clearly only for Microsoft's Xbox 360.

Now here's a real kicker: Xboxic recently dived headfirst into the official transcript of the conference call, and it appeared that Take-Two was offered a huge wad of cash for the Xbox 360 content - more specifically the episodic content to come in the next year.

Or so you can conclude from the given statement by analyst Evan Wilson of Pacific Crest Securities, which, excerpted would read "it relates to the deferred revenue chunk associated with the episodic content on X-Box 360." The deferred chunk value that Wilson mentioned points to two basic figures: 25 million as "current" and 50 million accrued as the next period passes.

Now the deferred amount, according to Take-Two's newly appointed chief financial officer Lainie Goldstein, is split half-way because US$ 25 million is stowed away for the first of the episodes, which should hit the Microsoft next-gen console by March 2008 - well within the company's fiscal year of 2007. The second episode costs just as much, although should be released "later in fiscal '08."


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39 Comments


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   by ME (Unregistered) - 2007-06-18
 » ..

"If you can't beat them, buy them off."

MicroSux's monopolistic motto. :)


   Re: DerDude (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » ...

Sooo... lets do some calculatings....

50 Mil for two Episodes, makes 25 Mil per episode.

XboX360 has a rough install basement of 10Mil.

50 Mil (or 25 Mil) divied by 10 Mil gives
Thats 5$ for both or 2.5$ for one Episode (just covering this payment)

Seeing as they will add taxes and of course a profit margin.
And also assumed that take2 knows that not every 360 owner will get gta4 or the DLC.

Lets do some math again: Assuming that half of the 360 owners get GTA4 thats 5Mil. Lets say tow third of those get the DLC. Makes 3.3Mil DLC Downloads

50 Mil divided by 3.3Mil + 15.15$
Profit Margin (30%) + 19.69$
round up + 19.99$

COMING TO YOUR XBOX360 AT A SMALL FEE OF 19.99$ YAYZOR

   Re: Devise (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » ...

Probably 18 to 20 million by the time this content is released in 2008.

   Re: DerDude (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » DONT

DONT mix "shipped" and "sold" again. k thnx bye

   Re: ry (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 »  DerDude go to school

God man your maths are rubbish you are counting on the game costing £1 not £45 pound a go so work that out.

   Re: me (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » .

wouldn't it be funny if T2 hid the "exclusive" content on the PS3 blu ray :)
   by Quixand - 2007-06-18
 » 50 Mil??!!!

50 million (25 mil for each episode)...

that money could have been used to develop a new killer exclusive rather than on two episodes (one of them to be released roughly a year after the main game)...

anyway it's their money... whatever plan they have i'm not getting it... unless it's a condition that they were initially forced into just to get the GTA franchise into the 360...

but damn $50 mil for two episodes!! i don't know how they can make that back (if they are even planning to get it back) this way.



   Re: Devise (Unregistered) - 2007-06-18
 » ...

It will drive sales to the 360 version, plus they make the money back on the content. Plus Sony doesn't get the content, and it puts them in good stead with Rockstar. I would be very surprised if they couldn't make their money back on this. After all GTA is the biggest franchise in console gaming.

I can understand PS3 owners are ticked off about this, but I'm sure Sony hd a chance to open their pocket at some stage. That could be another reason the price was so high, bidding war.

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   Re: Quixand - 2007-06-18
 » Devise

you can count me out of the "ticked off PS3 owners" cause i haven't played a GTA even once... i just watch my brother have a go at it (we used to share in one PS2) but it just never appealed to me.

considering ur valid points still 50 mil for two episodes (everything else is on the PS3 as well)... it just sounds too much (unless as i said it was part of the initial condition to have the franchise on the 360)... to think with that kind of money they should have gotten exclusivity (well maybe not being how huge GTA is, but with other good multiplat game maybe) or as i said been used to develop a new killer exclusive.. but 50 mil with only two episodes to show for it (also considering the dates of whem these two episodes will be released) is, to me, just throwing away money which could have been used somewhere else.

   Re: Devise (Unregistered) - 2007-06-18
 » ...

Obviously it cost too much for MS to buy it as an exclusive title else it would be. If this is all the content MS could get exclusives rights for I would say well spent. MS is pioneering this type of content on the console space and they originally brought the idea to Rockstar.

They aren't throwing money away, because nearly all 360 owners will want this content.

I'm sure Sony has shelled some large sums to get exclusive content. You can have your extra Spiderman 3 content and I'll have my 2 GTA IV episodes.

   Re: Quixand - 2007-06-18
 » Devise

wow you like to flame don't you???

You can have your extra Spiderman 3 content and I'll have my 2 GTA IV episodes.

where did that come from??? did i diss the XBox in anyway??? you are a moron and i shouldn't even have tried to reply to ur post cause u just flame!!!!

as for the Spiderman comment you underhandedly made (eventhough i don't have the game and never even planned in getting it, never read a preview or review, skipped articles about it on magazines)... Sony didn't pay 50 mil for it they own the rights to the franchise thus the added content... and the PS3 owners that has the game didn't have to pay anything additional for it anyway so it's just a pleasant bonus and i don't even know of ANY ps3 owner being proud of it or rubbing it in... actually it's just you who mentioned it!!! maybe you're bitter cause you it...

   Re: Quixand - 2007-06-18
 » ur so

***** defensive ur pathetic.

   Re: Shatterdome - 2007-06-19
 » Hmm

In order to make the money back they would have to be pretty big episodes and charge 1200 points each.

Assuming that 4 million people get the game at least half of them buy the content....then they could just barely make it back...

However, I think more importantly is the publicity and the fact that the 360 version will have something the ps3 version doesn't and possibley get some more game and/or system sales which will make them abit more cash...

Overall a good deal i'd say....even though I will most likely not get the game or content :P

   Re: Devise (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » ...

@ Quixland

I didn't really mean it to be that harsh a comment. Usually you dodge these things without a problem. It was just an example of Sony acquiring additional content on a title to promote thier console verses what MS has done here. Spiderman 3 was just an example. I don't know if I could of thrown any other examples out there, I don't think there is any others.

   Re: .. (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » ..

I only use my ps3 as a PC and blueray player, all the best games come out on xbox, playstation failed.
   by BeerManMike (Unregistered) - 2007-06-18
 » omg

Guess they couldn't afford the millions it would of took to buy out the game completely?

only thing now if for M$ to tie "take-two" and "bungie" up like puppets and make them have a money fight with each other...

This is sad take-two, F'in sad...

(P.S. same thing goes if sony does/did something like this)

   by nic (Unregistered) - 2007-06-18
 » !

can't wait for the halo/gta crossover! Master Chief in da house! No seriously I should give up console gaming and take up knitting or something...any where there is millions of dollars people are getting exploited.


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   Re: ?! (Unregistered) - 2007-06-18
 » WTF...

Take Two must be desperate. To sell it off straight on without realizing it. I have all (consoles) of them so F' the greedy execs screwing gamers. I hope there anti trust or competitive suits down the line...
   by Pluck (Unregistered) - 2007-06-18
 » This is all microsux does well

All they do well is buy off people and basically try to kill everything in their path. E.G. Linux. Microsoft needs to be destroyed by some new OS and fast. I'm so sick of seeing them putting out garbage consoles and reaping $ off people for stuff that's their fault. Thank god they will lose their HD DVD to Blueray, but then again when they make their xbox360 purple system they will force everyone to buy another console from them, just like the ELITE. Microsoft in the game biz is just pure money evil.


   Re: cerberus414 (Unregistered) - 2007-06-18
 » gg

Honestly, someone of you need to keep your mouths shut if you have no idea what you're talking about. Microsoft hasn't made a single cent off of the Xbox gaming division. IN FACT, they are in the hole by about 3.8 Billion dollars. If you call that pure evil money, then you need to go back to the econ class and learn that debt !+ profit

   Re: . (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » Eh

Linux blows anyway, it's just an excuse for nerds who think they're cool to "fight the power"

   Re: .. (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » ..

lol so true

   Re: AoxomamoxoA - 2007-06-19
 » @ Pluck

also, HDDVD isnt Microsofts, its Toshibas.

You really have no idea what youre talking about. Wow...
   by bjjkhk (Unregistered) - 2007-06-18
 » Its been said before.........

M$ has brought there way into the gaming genre........look at xbox 1.....crap had a 10 gb harddrive in it and when its moddedd..............Anyways M$ is in the lead now but ps3 is on its way up. No worrys here btw gta4 for the ps3 is suppose to have some type of connection w/ psp......watch QJ is going to post it this month.


   Re: Devise (Unregistered) - 2007-06-18
 » ...

Yes and developers flocked to the PS1 without any money changing hands. Yeah right! Nothing MS has done business wise is any different from what Sony has done before. They bought out EA exclusiveness from SEGA and that's just one example. Stop being a tool.
   by dasher, loyal but honest fanboy (Unregistered) - 2007-06-18
 » yeah who scarred now

this just really shows the kind of company micro***** really is, they are clearly worried about the ps3, and rightfully should be


   Re: Huh? (Unregistered) - 2007-06-18
 » what

81,000 PS3 sales in North American is scaring Microsoft?

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   Re: GOPAL892005 (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » !

XBOX 360 is nearly double that : )

   Re: Philip (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » @ GOPAL892005

And the xbox 360 maybe is 4 times out longer than the ps3.
Ps3 has a better start than ps1 and ps2 so they can easely win. (and dont say a word of my english)
   by Xbox is the best (Unregistered) - 2007-06-18
 » sony

sony did the same crap in the past but it was so long ago people don't care, sony is just getting a taste of their own medicine and owned they are, bow down to your owner sony bow LOL i'm loving every moment of this, thanks microsoft

   by ACE (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » Wow....sony boys must be angry

Episodic content. That means the game will be huge. I mean its almost a console first that a game gets new plot content released for it. New stories, new characters, new vehicles...all of that and you won't even have to pay full price. Its a fantastic way to increase the longevity of any game. I would be sssoooo mad if I was a Sony owner.......But Im not.


   Re: .. (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » ..

Oblivion has it on xbox marketplace.
   by no name (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » :)

I love you MS :). One of the best games and 2 episodes extra. Damn I would even pay 30$ per episode if they are good. Thanks so much,I can't wait any more

   by the bot (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » damn MS....so pathetic

So annoying MS waving the cash in front of T2 for exclusive content. Only MS can afford to buy the MS downloaded content ....$50 mill dollars ain't cheap.....
just reminds me of premiership football (soccer to the Yanks) ..... Chelsea have all the money in the world buying all the best players , but still they didn't win the premiership....... if only they completely brought out take2 and the GTA franchise they would have stood a chance........................ GTA 4 is still coming out on PS3 minus the DLC so suck on that MS xbots LOL

   by don't need to know (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » sad

M$ you have to pay for everything just to make people like you. guess money dorset buy happiness or friends. you'll be sold out when bill dies anyway. so your nothing but another POS company.

   by dondon1 (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » woohooo

sux for sony owners!!! thank you take two for being a bunch of jews!!! lmao imso happyi got a 360!!

   by YEs (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » Cool

Yep, 360 is definetly awesome. DLC for GTA4 is awesome it looks like a sweet game anyway, plus the extra is going to be amazing.

Thank god I spent less for more.


   Re: ytry (Unregistered) - 2007-06-19
 » Forza 2 is amazing

Forza 2 and Command and conquer are amazing on the 360, hang on oh they arnt for the PS3 are they.
   by Xbox is the best (Unregistered) - 2007-06-20
 » LOL

enjoy the incomplete version on blu ray with all that extra space, sorry playstation fans had to do it.



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