Square Enix, Eidos Agree On Buyout Timeline

Tomb Raider publisher Eidos released a timeline to its shareholders that outlines a schedule for its $117 million acquisition by Japanese publisher Square Enix. According to the schedule, shareholders will vote on March 25th. If all goes as planned, Square Enix will take full ownership of the UK-based Tomb Raider publisher by May 6. Time Warner, which owns 20 percent of Eidos, is contractually obligated to allow the deal unless it were to make an offer of its own. It must accept the Eidos' Board of Directors' recommendation to its shareholders that they take the deal. Eidos' share value has seen a steady decline in recent years as the company's debts slowly mounted. Most recently, the company posted lackluster sales of Underworld, the latest title in its seminal Tomb Raider franchise, and reduced its profit outlook for the year. As for Square Enix, the powerful Japanese Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest house has been in strong pursuit of Western footholds over the past year or so as it confronts declining market share for Japanese-developed games in the Western market.