Eidos confirms takeover interest

Computer games maker Eidos today confirmed it was in talks with a number of parties that could lead to a takeover of the company.

The England-based group – best known for its Tomb Raider series – said it was in preliminary discussions with a small number of unnamed companies that may or may not lead to an offer. It is thought US-based games publishers such as Electronic Arts could be among those interested.

The news follows a strategic review launched by Eidos in June as it warned shareholders it would fail to make a profit in the current financial year.

The group said at the time that it expected a break-even figure or even a small loss because of its decision to delay the release of a key title until September.

Eidos said today that “whilst it continues to keep all options under review, it is in preliminary discussions in relation to possible business combinations”.

Shares in the group have risen by around 20% over the past week amid speculation a bid may be on the cards. Today the stock lifted a further 1.5p to 108.5p.

Earlier in the year the company’s shares tumbled after it warned that an unexpected softness in the games market, particularly in the United States, would affect results for the year to June 30.

Eidos recently said market weakness had affected sales of its Hitman game - even though the product was still doing well in the charts.

The previous two titles in the Hitman series have proved highly successful, with the second selling some three million copies to date.

Eidos has expanded overseas in recent years with bases in Australia, Germany, France and Japan.

It employs more than 270 people in the UK at a publishing division in Derby, a development resource centre in north London and its Wimbledon headquarters.

The company said today that it did not expect to make any further announcements on the talks until it posts annual results in early September.