Electronic Arts has decided to extend its Friday deadline for Take-Two Interactive to accept its purchase offer worth US$ 2 billion. The Grand Theft Auto 4 (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3) publisher now has until May 16 to accept the deal, but at a lower bid rate.

EA's bid has dipped from a high of US$ 27 per share to US$ 26.74. The offer value was reduced following stock holder approval of a stock incentive plan.

Business analysts say that EA may still raise its offer yet again by a dollar or two depending on how sales of Take-Two's Grand Theft Auto 4 stack up. The game is expected to rack up 5 million units in the first two weeks off shelves.

EA is currently the world's biggest third-party video game publisher, and it hopes to remain on top amidst challenges from rivals like Activision Blizzard, Ubisoft, and more. If it can acquire Take-Two, the publisher's throne is pretty much secure.

Analysts warn, however, that EA cannot overbid for the acquisition of Take-Two. Analyst Todd Mitchell says EA has a large revenue mark, but its earning figures are pretty low. We can expect the two publishers to play this one by ear in the next few weeks.

The Grand Theft Auto franchise isn't the only thing of great value in EA's bid to acquire Take-Two. Pulling this off will eliminate competing sports titles from Take-Two's 2K Sports division.