The SEC alleged that Take-Two and former CEO Ryan Brant backdated options from 1997 through September 2003, misstated financial results and misled investors. Without admitting or denying the allegations, Take-Two agreed to a $3 million penalty and an injunction; Brant separately agreed to disgorgement, interest and a penalty totaling $6,261,606. Court approval was required for both settlements.
The Securities and Exchange Commission today simultaneously filed and settled civil charges against Ryan Ashley Brant, formerly the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of video and computer game publisher and distributor Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (Take-Two), alleging that during a seven year period, Brant enriched himself and others by granting undisclosed, “in the money” stock options to himself and to other Take-Two officers and employees.
The Complaint alleges that on over 100 occasions from 1997 through September 2003, Take-Two looked back and picked grant dates for the Company's incentive stock options, resulting in grants of "in-the-money" options. According to the Complaint, Take-Two used several means to backdate options, including pre-priced option pools, backdating of employment agreements, and "pick-a-date" backdating, whereby a set exercise price for the grants was chosen, and then a past grant date was selected when Take-Two's stock price most closely corresponded to the set exercise price. On at least 26 occasions, the backdated grant dates coincided with dates of historically low annual and quarterly closing prices for Take-Two's common stock. These "fortuitous" grant dates, the complaint alleges, could not have been selected so consistently without the benefit of hindsight. According to the Complaint, Take-Two granted these options without complying with its own stock option plans and, generally, without the Board or a Committee thereof approving the grant dates or exercise prices. The Complaint alleges that Take-Two officers and employees prepared documents falsely indicating that the option grants had been made on earlier dates when Take-Two's stock price had closed lower.
The SEC alleged that Take-Two inflated revenue through transactions disguising returnable game shipments as sales, among other accounting practices, and filed suit in June 2005 against the company and four executives. Take-Two agreed to a $7.5 million penalty and an injunction, without admitting or denying the allegations; the settlement was subject to court approval.
According to the Commission's complaint, Take-Two systematically recognized sales revenue from approximately 180 "parking" transactions in which the company, at or near the end of fiscal quarters or year end, shipped hundreds of thousands of video games to distributors who had no obligation to pay for the product, fraudulently recorded the shipments as if they were sales, and then accepted return of the games in subsequent reporting periods. In many cases, Take-Two created fraudulent invoices to disguise the returns as "purchases of assorted product." Take-Two also improperly recognized sales revenue for games that were still being manufactured and could not in fact be shipped, and in fiscal year 2000, improperly accounted for the acquisition of two video game publishers. In addition, from fiscal year 2000 through the third quarter of fiscal year 2003, Take-Two failed to establish proper reserves for reductions in the prices of its games at the retail level (referred to in the industry as "price protection" or "price concessions").
On March 10, 2026, workers at 2K’s Petaluma, California, motion-capture studio unanimously ratified their first labor contract with management at parent Take-Two, according to IATSE. The union said the deal sets wage minimums and increases, bonuses, leave and remote-work policies, staffing protections, promotion rules, and safeguards for scanned likenesses and AI.
The new deal establishes wage minimums as well as annual wage increases and bonuses. The contract additionally enshrines work-from-home and leave policies, staffing and subcontracting language and “an enforceable promotions framework,” IATSE stated. The contract also creates guardrails for the use of scanned likeness and artificial intelligence.
In 2006, the FTC alleged Take-Two and Rockstar failed to disclose unused nude skins and disabled sexually explicit game code in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, which could affect its rating. The agency proposed a consent order requiring clearer disclosures and content-review procedures; it was subject to public comment and final approval, not yet a final outcome.
This matter involves alleged deceptive representations in advertising and on product packaging concerning the content in the video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (“San Andreas”). In September 2004, the companies submitted materials to the Entertainment Software Rating Board (“ESRB”) for the purpose of obtaining a rating for the PlayStation 2 version of San Andreas. The companies did not inform the ESRB about the existence of an interactive sex mini-game that was embedded in the game's computer code, but was inaccessible during normal game play. Nor did the companies tell the ESRB that the game disc contained data files (unused in game play) for female skins, which, if accessed, render the female characters partially or completely nude. However, the ESRB's published requirements in effect at that time did not state that game companies were required to disclose unused skins in the game software or content in the game code that was inaccessible and unplayable without modifying the code. Based on the companies' submission, the ESRB assigned San Andreas a M (Mature 17+) rating and content descriptors for Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, and Use of Drugs. The companies released the Playstation 2 version of San Andreas in October 2004.
A proposed federal class action filed in New York in January 2025 alleged Take-Two shared users’ game-playing and video-watching histories with Meta and TikTok in violation of the Video Privacy Protection Act. Lead plaintiff Jose Luna claimed tracking pixels on Take-Two apps and its website enabled collection, without adequate notice or consent.
Video-game publisher Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. shared information about the game-playing and video-watching histories of its users with Meta Platforms Inc. and TikTok Inc. in violation of the Video Privacy Protection Act, a proposed federal class action said.
In 2025, Rockstar dismissed 30–40 employees, saying they shared confidential information; the workers said they were fired for union-related discussion. Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick defended the company’s labor record but did not answer a question about its general stance on unions. Rockstar maintained the dismissals were for gross misconduct, not union activity.
Take-Two Interactive and Rockstar Games have been busy. GTA 6 was delayed yesterday, news that broke alongside Take-Two's quarterly earnings call. And just last week, Rockstar fired between 30 and 40 employees, claiming later that they were "distributing and discussing confidential information in a public forum" against company policy. The fired employees, however, say they were participating in a union-related Discord chat, and that their firing was "blatant" and "ruthless" union busting.
WIRED reported on May 28, 2025, that Take-Two’s 2025 annual report replaced its 2024 discussion of social justice, LGBTQ+ rights, minority game-design scholarships and employee groups with a statement that “diversity of thought” drives innovation and a commitment to an inclusive workplace. Take-Two declined to comment; its website still expressed support for diverse teams.}}}} фор̀】【。棋牌游戏官网}leyen 老虎机} сиясий} 微信天天彩票}%timeout} }```} rugәзар} } (}
Take-Two Interactive, the publisher behind Grand Theft Auto VI, is forgoing any mention of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts and promoting “diversity of thought" in its latest annual report.
After the 2024 election, CEO Strauss Zelnick told Variety he believed the incoming administration would bring a “more sensible FTC.” He criticized the Biden-era FTC for trying to block transactions he considered beneficial, while saying deregulation could be positive depending on the issue. Zelnick also said Take-Two is focused on entertainment, not politics.
Take-Two revealed its most recent quarterly results Wednesday, the day after the presidential race between now-President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. When asked about the results and how they could affect future M&A moves (on the heels of Microsoft’s $75.4 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, which was closed during President Joe Biden’s tenure) within the gaming industry while speaking with Variety, Zelnick emphasized that while Take-Two is “an entertainment company, not a politics company,” he does believe the change in administration will lead to a “more sensible FTC.”
OpenSecrets reported $868,115 in contributions associated with Take-Two for the 2024 election cycle, all from individuals and none from the organization. Its recipient data show most funding went to Democratic committees and candidates. OpenSecrets said Take-Two reported no federal lobbying or outside spending during that cycle; totals include subsidiaries and affiliates.
imore infoNOTE: The organization itself did not donate, rather the money came from the organization's individual members or employees or owners, and those individuals' immediate family members. Organizations themselves cannot contribute to candidates and party committees. Totals include subsidiaries and affiliates.
In April 2026, Luke Dicken, Take-Two’s AI head and a former Zynga employee, said his time at the company and that of his team had ended; the article reports an undisclosed number of AI staff were apparently laid off. Take-Two declined to comment, despite CEO Strauss Zelnick’s public statements that the company was embracing generative AI.
The head of Take-Two Interactive‘s AI team has seemingly been laid off, along with an undisclosed number of other employees working on leveraging AI at the company that owns Rockstar Games, 2K, and Zynga. The reorg comes despite CEO Strauss Zelnick saying the parent-publisher is “actively embracing generative AI.”
In April 2022, a Take-Two investor filed a proposed class action alleging the company’s board concealed potential J.P. Morgan fees for financing the proposed $12.7 billion Zynga acquisition, beyond its $34 million advisory fee. The complaint claimed disclosure was needed for informed shareholder voting; Take-Two said it does not comment on legal matters.
A Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. investor filed suit in Delaware, claiming the company’s leaders are keeping shareholders in the dark about conflicts of interest affecting the JPMorgan Chase & Co. affiliate that steered its proposed $12.7 billion acquisition of Zynga Inc.
On November 6, 2024, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said the company took the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike against video game publishers seriously. He said Take-Two believed an agreement that would benefit both sides was possible and likely, and expressed hope and expectation that the parties could reach terms.
In regards to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike against video game publishers, Zelnick says: “We take these things very seriously, so I don’t want to be cavalier about the situation. We do believe that it’s both possible and likely that we can come to terms in a way that will be mutually beneficial to the parties. We certainly have both that hope and expectation.”
A 2023 report said Take-Two planned a $50 million cost-reduction program affecting corporate and publishing functions, and later confirmed layoffs at its Private Division label. The report also said CEO Strauss Zelnick and President Karl Slatoff were set to receive $72.3 million combined in performance-based compensation, more than double their 2022 earnings.
Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick and company president Karl Slatoff will be paid a combined $72.3 million in compensation this year.
In March 2018, New York’s Appellate Division found Leslie Benzies had adequately alleged breaches of royalty and employment agreements, including nonpayment of royalties, salary and stock, and affirmed denial of dismissal for several claims. It dismissed some other claims, including reformation of the 2009 plan; these were rulings at an early litigation stage, not findings of liability.
Plaintiff has adequately alleged a breach of the 2009 Royalty Plan and the 2012 Employment Agreement. The existence of those agreements is undisputed, and plaintiff has alleged his performance by his design of the Grand Theft Auto products, defendants' failure to pay him royalties, and his damages (Nevco Contr. Inc. v R.P. Brennan Gen. Contrs. & Bldrs., Inc., 139 AD3d 515 [1st Dept 2016]). Moreover, plaintiff has sufficiently alleged that defendants breached the 2009 Royalty Plan by, inter alia, not forming the Allocation Committee that was tasked with making royalty determinations.
On June 23, 2016, Take-Two said it would donate Civilization V to a nonprofit that adapts games for classrooms in the United States and Canada. The report said nonprofit GlassLab would develop an education version; the supplied evidence does not describe its release or classroom use.
Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. TTWO -1.39%decrease; down pointing triangle said Thursday it will donate “Civilization V,” the most recent installment in the 25-year-old series, to a nonprofit that modifies games for classrooms in the U.S. and Canada.