ThinkGeek Parent Geeknet Giving Hot Topic Three Days To Match Rival Suitor’s Offer

The love triangle between the parent company of online retailer ThinkGeek and its two suitors continues to heat up, with Geeknet now telling original suitor Hot Topic it has until Monday to match or exceed the higher bid from a new mystery rival. Because like so many real life dating situations, it all comes down to an ultimatum.

The choice facing Hot Topic now is whether to top the unnamed rival’s offer of $20 per share — after originally offering $17.50 a share — or walk away, ostensibly broken-hearted and ready to hit the booze and ice cream aisles hard.

Geeknet noted then that its board of directors still has to approve the undisclosed suitor’s offer. Today the company says in a statement [PDF]that while it hasn’t changed its recommendation in favor of the Hot Topic buyout, the new bid is a superior deal and Hot Topic has just three days to match it.

While Geeknet says it’s required and “intends to” negotiate in “good faith with Hot Topic” during the match period, which lasts until Monday, June 1 at 9 a.m., iff the board determines then that the new suitor’s offer continues to be a superior proposal, the company says that under its agreement with Hot Topic it’ll be required to pay a 3% break-up fee. In that event, Geeknet says its new bidder has agreed to reimburse the company for paying that fee.