New York’s Take-Two Interactive is acquiring all outstanding shares of San Francisco-based game developer Zynga in a strategic merger that will create new opportunities in the lucrative mobile gaming space for Take-Two’s PC and console video game titles, which include Grand Theft Auto, Red Dead Redemption and BioShock.

Mobile gaming is currently the fastest-growing segment of the entertainment industry, and is expected to continue expanding at a rate of 8% over the next three years, according to data from IDG Consulting.

Strauss Zelnick will continue to serve as CEO of Take-Two, with Zynga CEO Frank Gibeau and president of publishing Bernard Kim overseeing integration and heading up day-to-day operations for the combined Zynga and T2 Mobile Games business (which will operate under the Zynga brand as its own label). Zynga’s existing mobile gaming portfolio boasts kid-skewing and all-ages titles including FarmVille, Words With Friends and Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells (pictured).

The acquisition is expected to finalize in the first quarter of Take-Two’s fiscal 2023 year (ending June 2022), subject to the approval of both companies’ stockholders and all applicable regulatory bodies.