In a conference call today, Take-Two Interactive backed up Rockstar Games' denial that Grand Theft Auto IV would see a delay as speculated by analyst Michael Pachter. According to a report from Gamespot, Take-Two execs reconfirmed a mid-October release date for the PLAYSTATION 3 and Xbox 360 game.

Sony executives will be happy to hear that Take-Two CEO Benjamin Feder predicts that GTA IV's arrival will have a welcome impact on PS3 sales. He predicts "the release of Grand Theft Auto IV is going to to have a material beneficial impact on sales" on the console. Enough to surpass Game Boy Advance sales? Totally possible.

Amidst all that good news was some bad, as the company announced its plans for organizational restructuring, ten nice syllables for "lay-offs." Feder says "a significant percentage of our workforce" will be let go, adding credibility to that rumor that Take-Two would be making workers redundant in Europe. It also lends more weight to recent theories that it's becoming increasingly "hard out here" for video game publisher employees, not just pimps. Michael McWhertor

Take-Two restructuring, not delaying GTA IV [Gamespot]