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| - New York City-based game maker Take-Two Interactive purchased Serbian mobile gaming developers Nordeus for just under $400 million (327 million euros), both companies said in a statement on Wednesday. The Belgrade company is best known for its for Top Eleven, which is considered to be one of the world's most successful mobile football management games with over 240 million registered users. Nordeus will receive $225 million in cash and another $90 million in newly issued shares of Take-Two common stock, the company behind popular titles including "Grand Theft Auto" and "Bioshock" said. "Over the last decade, Top Eleven has grown its audience, revenue, and profitability through Nordeus' introduction of live-ops and ongoing gameplay innovations that continue to drive ongoing consumer engagement," Take-Two said. Nordeus was founded as a startup in 2010 by a group of young former Microsoft staffers, and the company quickly grew into Serbia's leading IT company employing some 180 people. According to Take-Two, the founders will continue to oversee the business after the purchase. "We're delighted to be joining the Take-Two family," Nordeus said on Twitter after one of the Balkan country's largest business sales in recent years, on a par with the 400 million euros Russian energy giant Gazprom paid for a 51 percent stake in Serbian state oil company NIS just over a decade ago. mbs/cdw
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