Take-Two SEC filings reveal further ‘Hot Coffee’ lawsuits

Take-Two Interactiveâs SEC filings, which have been delayed as a result of apparent irregularities in the companyâs accounting procedures, have revealed a number of potential lawsuits in the ongoing Hot Coffee scandal.

The Financial reports for the full 2005 fiscal period matched previously reported un-audited results for the firm, which failed to meet initial expectations.

However, the SEC filings revealed further issues for the beleaguered publisher, as details of the legal wrangle over the now infamous Hot Coffee scandal connected to adult material hidden in GTA: San Andreas.

In addition to the ongoing FTC investigation, a lawsuit brought against the company by the families of slain police officers, and the recently filed lawsuit from the city of Los Angeles city attorney's office, the incident has led to three further lawsuits in Pennsylvania, Illinois and New York.

Further requests for the company to turn over books and records relating to GTA: San Andreas have been cited from Delaware Chancery Court, and the attorney generals of North Carolina and Connecticut. It is highly likely that further lawsuits will follow from these requests, further compounding the company's issues and potentially resulting in a massive increase in litigation costs.

Additional revelations from the filings came in the form of financial details for Take-Two's multiple developer acquisitions during fiscal 2005. The company spent USD 32 million on the acquisition of Visual Concepts and Kush Games (developers of Take-Two's annual sports titles), USD 27 million for the acquisition of Civilization developer Firaxis, and USD 11 million on the Gaia Capital Group, which is currently developing the next title in the Top Spin tennis series.

A further sum of approximately USD 10 million was spent on the recent acquisition of Irrational Games, creators of comic-book inspired RPG, Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich.