Speaking at a digital media conference, Take-Two's chairman and CEO, Karl Slatoff, spoke out against the two Australian retailers that pulled Grand Theft Auto V off their stores' shelves.

"It's one thing for someone to not want to buy a piece of content, which is completely understandable. And that's really the solution. If you don't like it and it's offensive to you, then you don't buy it. But for a person or a group of people to try to make that decision for millions of people...



We have 34 million people who bought Grand Theft Auto, and if these folks had their way, none of those people would be able to buy Grand Theft Auto. And that really just flies in the face of everything that free society is based on. It's the freedom of expression, and to try to squelch that is a dangerous and slippery slope to go down.



So it's really more disappointing for us in that regard than it is in the context of our business. Our business is going to be completely unaffected by this; it doesn't make a difference to us. At the end of the day though, it's not something you want because it's a poor leadership decision."

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When Slatoff was asked if digital sales spiked after GTA 5 was no longer for sale at certain brick-and-mortar stores, he decried both Australian Target and Kmart stores for taking away the customer's right to choose which entertainment to buy and enjoy. Check out the full quote below from GI.biz Slatoff added that there are "other places" for Australians to buy Grand Theft Auto V.If you haven't gotten around to playing GTA V yet, check out our GTA V wiki for complete info on mission walkthroughs, collectibles, cheats, money making tips, and more.

Brian is an associate editor at IGN. He plays too much Dota 2. You can follow him @albinoalbert on Twitter.