Kadokawa Wants Sony's Full Commitment with Buyout of Entire Company

I’m so tired of all these buyouts and mergers lately. Hopefully this one doesn’t pan out. Then again if Microsoft is also interested, I’d rather Sony have it, the lesser of two evils so to speak…Anything to stop Microsoft’s rampant pointless buyouts.

@LavenderShroud you really think that sony is lesser evil? Lol

Better sony than Microsoft or tenecent imo . Also considering sony did a lot to make bloodborne, it would make sense plus increase sonys value

@DarthCvrle66 i agree , as microsoft have a track record of closing studios they acquire , aony tend to help studios develop than stagnate

This company is worth over £3 billion. So how much is it likely to cost Sony?
No doubt it will be a better buy than Bungie was.

@Major_Player they're not though, mainly looking to boost anime etc

@Major_Player There's more than 2 IP's on the table, Sony would be acquiring huge chunks of Anime and Manga rights, rights that would bring them more income than Elden Ring 2 would.

@DarthCvrle66 Maybe learn what Microsoft does in other sectors? They want a near monopoly in every business they get into so that sweet SaaS subscription prices (recurring revenue) can increase significantly. This has occurred in hosting but also operating systems (with hosting you can only choose Microsoft, Amazon or some Chinese party forgot what the name is)

Sony and Kadokawa is such a better fit than MS, Tencent or Kakao. Sony already owns around 2% of Kadokawa if i’m not mistaken. And 15% of FromSoftware. Also the, history between these two goes back to the PS1 era. They have been working closely where Sony already owns several IP made by their gaming studio. Not to mention the fact that Kadokawa wants Sony to buy them out. They dont want a foreign company to buy them out. It would be a total cultural mismatch.

And yes @DarthCvrle66

Ok, so unless Sony gets cold feet, it's done. Kadokawa needs/wants a buyer and wants them to be locals, plus both have had a longstanding relationship together. Can imagine games will stay multiplat...well, maybe they keep off Xbox just to spite them as they do 😆, but Nintendo and PC will continue.

@AdamNovice Microsoft probably just wanted From software, they seem to want to monopolise the biggest IP's around.

I think it's going to go through. I think the Japanese government would step in to stop another foreign company from acquiring it.

Wouldn't this risk Sony becoming a monopoly when it comes to the anime side of things? Buying the company outright could well see some them undergoing scrutiny just as Microsoft did, and maybe even having to jettison the anime part of this acquisition...

@Shepherd_Tallon the Japanese government? I did not know that. Very interesting.

Will it make the Bloodborne remaster happen any quicker?

I think any Japanese developer would think twice selling to Microsoft after what they did to Tango Gameworks. Release a critically successful game, boast about it's success then shut down the developer? Weird way to show job security.

And they can't even handle what they have. Firing people left and right and shutting several studios and yet want more. Xbox is severely mismanaged at this point and shouldn't be allowed to have anything else until they can prove they're not totally incompetent. And that they stick to their agreements of "not shuttering studios, firing people and nurturing talent" that was the bs line during the FTC trial.

@Shepherd_Tallon he wants the company to be bought by a japanese company and not some foreign company. plus it will be easier for sony to buy it then a foreign company.. due to japanese laws..

@Major_Player Did you casually ignore the entire anime bit?

sony and kadogawa would be a perfect match since they have worked together and sony owns 14% of fromsoft stock.. and 2% of kadogawa.. it is at this point just a matter of when it will happen..

@DarthCvrle66 Did Sony recently buy one of the biggest multiformat publishing houses in the industry, and then turn around and buy the actual biggest in an attempt to financially strangle the competition? No? Oh that was Microsoft who have a history of doing just that in order to bury the competition and monopolise? Okay then.

🤣 I love how some people think Microsoft is so squeaky-clean… they really did a number on you guys didn’t they 😂

Anyone watch DreamcastGuy’s video on this? For the laughs, I mean, not because there’s any credible news or competent takes. I especially enjoyed the extra syllable he adds to Kadokawa, now affectionately known as ‘Kadowakawa’.

As I wrote in the 2 previous articles on this topic, seems like a done deal and they are just publicly squabbling about the price now. Sony trying to keep the price down b/c they really only want the anime, Kadokawa wanting to sell the whole company so probably asking for more.

Some of these Japanese companies still value cultural heritage and anime is an important part of that. Anime is a significant source of national pride, an art form deeply entwined with Japanese heritage and identity.

Its not like they just sell everything to the highest bidder and don't care about the potential cultural consequences it might have.
Like falling in the hands of certain foreign companies who might not have the same cultural affinity with it and just want to make money, and risking the industry be changed in a way not in line with Japanese culture and custom.

Not for consolidation but if that's what they want then Sony is still the better option to handle Anime and general Japanese IPs.

@get2sammyb perhaps, but with the large (or at least outspoken) Bloodborne fanbase, it would be silly not to utilise from software.

If talks already happened between Sony and Kadokawa for years then this is sounds like Kadokawa prefer a fellow Japanese company to acquire them over non-Japanese like MS or Tencent.

@DarthCvrle66 In this case? Sony is absolutely the lesser evil compared to MS.

@Major_Player Remember this is Sony Corp as the buyer here not SIE/PlayStation. They’re clearly after the other bits, the gaming stuff is probably just a bonus.

@somnambulance movies from Mamoro Hosoda and Makoto Shinkai, so pretty much the most high profile anime directors beyond Hayao Miyazaki

I don't think it's going to take much convincing to get Sony on board with the whole company. Nearly every bit of the company fits something Sony is looking to bolster. Anime, Manga, Fromsoft...the shoe definitely fits.

In the end, who really cares who buys whom? This stuff isn’t new. It’s been happening since business was a thing. I’ll still play what I play and get up for work each day to make money to pay my bills. Let the suits worry about this side of gaming. Just give me something good to play.

The sad part is, this'll probably be way cheaper than bungie.

I’m not for or against the acquisition but I will say that Sony have done right by FromSoftware over the years. They were the publisher and assisted in development for the original Demons Souls so who knows if Dark Souls, Bloodborne or Elden Ring would even exist without that relationship. I don’t watch much Anime so don’t really have a dog in that fight but I have played and loved every Soulsborne game by FromSoftware so would hate to see them stagnate under a Microsoft or Tencent. At least history tells us that Sony believes in and cares about these games.

@DarthCvrle66 a lot of the people here only own playstations and/or Nintendo switch.

@DarthCvrle66 Sony bought/invested millions into Firewalk/Concord if it didn't flop massively then they would still be open. Mircosoft on the other hand bought Tango works who gave them an award winning game and still closed them down. so yes they are the lesser evil.

@DarthCvrle66 Microsoft is worth 3 trillion dollars, Sony is worth over 1 billion. Sony is the lesser evil in my book.

I see that i stirred up the hornet’s nest I meant that they r both the same. They both buy studios and close them. They r both gready as F but i think MS gives us more for less money.

Nowdays people are biased both in xbox and Ps groups, God forbid we say anything wrong about their parent companies. I remember the time when Games were finished and there were no Microtransactions and etc. We should fight against that and not arrgue about which company takes more from their consumers.

Best example is now PS Pro that is in my mind not worth 800€

@Fiendish-Beaver Yup, it seems that many people here have absolutely no problem overlooking the fact that Sony will basically be a western monopoly when it comes to anime.

Looks like they want to sell no matter what so yeah I would prefer Sony over the others. Fromsoft is a bonus in the deal although I'm sure their games would stay multiplatform.

Damn, I was hoping Kadokawa was just entertaining the idea of a buyout. But apparently they seem eager to sell. Sigh. 😔

On the positive side maybe Sony can save From Software by firing that hack Hidetaka Miyazaki, move the studio to California and make Niel Druckmann lead writer & creative director so we finally can have our bigoted expectations subverted and given the game we deserve.

Then after we've all cried, grown and had our lives changed by the literary genius... we'll get Born Elden: Ring of Souls a massive GaaS title. Guaranteed, one hundred percent, the live service game of the ages. 💯
I for one feel giddy. 😅

...on the other hand, we might get a remastered Bloodborne. Ok, I'll allow it!

@DarthCvrle66 they don’t give you more, they rent you it… the moment you stop paying it’s no longer available to you.

And Microsoft just released a series x with nothing new about it but some sprinkles and a bigger hard drive for only $100 less than a pro… so I wouldnt say that was worth its price.

We get it, you’re on a budget so you went with the inexpensive loan of games rather than own… doesn’t make Sony more evil, just not as suited to your personal needs as a budget gamer 🤷

@Dragon83 Can’t believe we’re still say this nonsense after Japan Studio closure. Where was that “Helping studios develop”.

@IslandLogic Maybe we should let the regulatory bodies who will thoroughly review this deal decide whether this will create a monopoly or not. If it is, then certain aspects of the deal will need to be changed, don't worry.

@DarthCvrle66 MS is famous for its monopolistic practices in its long history, they have been found guilty of it in the past. They just recently consolidated a big chunk of the gaming industry by buying two of the biggest 3rd publishers in the world. Further continuing to aggressively push their rent service to everyone.

Im not Saying Sony is perfect, but yeah the lesser evil for sure.

@LogicStrikesAgain “ Sony already owns around 2% of Kadokawa if i’m not mistaken. And 15% of FromSoftware.”

They own 14 which is less than what Tencent owns… and I’m sure Tencent owns more of Kadokawa as well.

@AverageGamer the majority of studios are developed , the Japan studios hasn't made anything decent in years apart from a couple VR games

@LuXifer your joking right? Druckmam can't write a decent story for toffee. After they booted amy hennig

I really don't want Korea, China or Microsoft owning Japanese companies so Sony you'd better bite their hand off

@Dragon83 I think I overdosed on the snarkiness today.😁 Yeah, all of those things would be terrible.

Except the remake of course.

@AverageGamer That is true, but see my other reasons and posts about why i think Tencent would not be a good fit.

Im not implying that the company with the most shares gets the deal. Regardless of other companies owning shares, Sony owning shares could benefit them in a buyout since they are also already familiar with the company.

Honestly? I hope it goes through.
Sony Music Entertainment Japan has been a solid branch so far and I don't think they can mismanage Kadokawa's IPs.

@colonelkilgore genuinely shocked more people aren't talking about how much of a ripoff the 2tb Xbox and the digital xsx are..

@SlipperyFish it’s coz PlayStation gamers are too busy gaming and Xbox gamers would rather forget about it 😉

Pretty much guaranteed I should think, the pure xbox comment section when it does,will no doubt be a sh*t show.

@SlipperyFish why how much is it ?

@Loamy
Monopoly is almost impossible, production and licensing are managed by a committee not by a single company.

@lazarus11 $600

@Dragon83 Isnt the point of developing studio to help studios create successful games, and point them in the right direction? The fact you’re saying “ hasn't made anything decent in years apart from a couple VR games” (which is incredibly stupidly false by the way) an example of Sony failure at developing and helping a studio?

Outside of a handful of Sony’s studios… Most of them have very much stagnated.

@AverageGamer I think that's more a symptom of the difficulty and cost of making high-quality games these days tbh. Since games went Triple AAA both companies have struggled releasing exclusives, especially Microsoft. Sony have struggled with it recently. It's just the state of the industry.

@Loamy Im sure Japan has strict antitrust laws, and this deal will be reviewed thoroughly by regulatory bodies to see if they wont become a monopoly or negatively impact competition in any way. And if it will, the deal will need to be adjusted accordingly. Thats how these things go.

Thats how it went with the MS-Activision deal. Many offered reasons about how it might become a monopoly. They investigated it, and after the needed adjustments it got approved. I don't see why anything would be different with this deal. It will need to pass regulatory review, so you most likely wont have to worry.

I personally have nothing against it, not that they'd need my permission.

@Loamy I do understand your concerns btw, not trying to diminish it at all. But i’d personally put more trust in Japanese regulatory bodies than some other countries to be honest. I feel like regulatory institutions in Japan might be more strict and less prone to corruption. To be fair, these are just my assumptions of the Japanese culture coming across as having a stronger emphasis on fairness and doing honest business.

While the potential is big just keep in mind it’s a ton of money and Sony just doesn’t have the infinite cash as Microsoft or Tencent, meaning the integration of Kadokawa could lead to mass layoffs, shutdowns and closures not only within Kadokawa but Sony’s current business too in the short and medium term after the merger is complete.

TLDR: I’m worried about Sony’s stability after spending that amount of money, especially after their other huge investment in live-services didn’t pan out.

@lazarus11 $600 for the 2tb XSX, $450 for the discless XSX

@colonelkilgore with the price of those proprietary expansion cards, it probably seems cheap in comparison

@LavenderShroud I personally think the lesser of the 2 evils is the other way considering MS are at least open to cross platform where Sony want to monopolise...

Remember, we are not part of the company, we are consumers and what should matter to us is what's best for us, not a tribal preference

@IOI Im not sure for how much this deal will go through. But im guessing somewhere around $4+ billion would be a fair guess.(Although recent stock risings might further up the price)

And while a lot of money, i don't think its that much for a company like Sony. If i remember correctly Take Two bought Zynga for $12.7 billion a few years ago, and they’re a much smaller company than Sony.

However i do agree with incorporating such a large variety of business and large workforce into your company will be quite an undertaking.

Edit: Having read ur comment again, you never stated their inability to be able to buy them, only your concerns about their stability afterwards. And i agree fully with you.

@neillaw When acquiring studios, Sony has actually kept IP multiplat more often than MS has done.

Edit: I do realize this statement isn't correct, and will adjust accordingly: MS has made more former multiplatform IP exclusive than Sony has.

@Loamy
Most works in Japan are run by production commitees since the mid-80s
Also, its not a written rule but usually if a company handles the distribution inside Japan they let other company handle the international release.

Case in point, Aniplex does not handle most of international releases from the shows they are part, one example is My Hero Academia where Aniplex is part of the production committee but Toho handles the international distribution.

As long as FromSoftware stays multi-platform, I don't care.

Even as someone who turned to PC for the majority of my gaming needs, I don't want FromSoftware to follow Sony's whole "Will we? Won't we?" stance on PC releases.

Even though most modern first-party games have had a PC release at some point, it still doesn't feel like a guarantee that a game will get a PC release.

I lost interest in anime long ago, so I couldn't care less who owns what in that arena.

@LogicStrikesAgain as far as I know of Sony has the most exclusive titles by about 3 or 4x that of microsoft, so rather questionable statement...

@LogicStrikesAgain I would think Tencent would be a better fit tbh. No matter how much people want to swing Sony and Fromsoftware history together as a sword. This purchases isn’t just about video games.

Kadokawa wants to keep the whole company intact, and stay a separate subsidiary under the wider Sony company. If that what company, wouldn’t the better company be the one who supports that?

Tencent also hasn’t exactly shown why they’re a bad company other than the usual “Chinese company bad”. They’ve been pretty much hands off in terms of game development, and we don’t really have to fear about games going exclusive unlike if Sony bought Fromsoftware.

Not questionable, im saying when Sony acquires a company they oftentimes keep multiplatform games multiplatform. MS doesn't always do that. Im not talking about exclusives. Im talking about when Sony buys Kadokawa, if we go by past practice, Sony will likely keep it multiplatform.

@AverageGamer In this case, cultural synergy is a very important factor. A Japanese company would be much more in tune with the significance of the content. And more sensitive with maintaing brand identity. Anime is very much a big part of Japanese culture. I even think that the Japanese public would prefer companies that hold this much cultural content to stay in local hands.

I feel like saying Tencent would be a better fit is a bit weird, since Kadokawa has shown concern from foreign hostile takeovers. A Japanese company would naturally understand and respect the heritage of the content more than a foreign company.

Tencent is also sometimes very limited in what they are able to do with their business, because of China having stricter laws and more censorship.

Oh and why is a long history of close partnership not a big factor? I would think having a great partnership already would be very beneficial in a merger or acquisition scenario.

@LogicStrikesAgain The only studio that I know that Sony ever kept independent is Bungie - but even that is now coming into question now that Sony has stepped in after Destiny failed to meet expectations.

What publisher has Sony bought and kept them multiplatform?!

I'm genuinely curious.

@GamingFan4Lyf Independent? I think we are having different conversations here.

I said Sony keeps multiplatform games multiplatform. More so than MS does. Which multiplatform games has Sony made exclusive after buying it?

@GamingFan4Lyf Sony probably isn’t keeping Fromsoftware games multiplatform probably release them on pc later.

@LogicStrikesAgain What multi-platform games has Sony bought other than Destiny?

I'm not arguing with you. I don't know.

• All released multi-platform games from Bethesda stayed multi-platform (DOOM, Quake, Fallout, etc.). Xbox didn't get any exclusive content/updates from any of those IPs.
• Double Fine still released Psychonauts 2 on PlayStation. The only "exclusive" feature Xbox got from Psychonauts was HDR via system-wide AutoHDR. Running the game on PS5 had the same benefits as the "native" Series X|S version (which was still essentially the X1 code running on a better backwards compatibility layer and given a "Series X|S" flag).
• Call of Duty stayed multi-platform.

@Fiendish-Beaver @IslandLogic Or we do not care? Microsoft a far bigger company could buy Activision blizzard and only had to spinoff hosting to Ubisoft. Do you except the same scrutiny with Sony compared to Microsoft (AB)? I think people who moan about Monopoly need to have a good look at Disney and Microsoft (when American companies do this they get a free pass)

@LogicStrikesAgain “ I feel like saying Tencent would be a better fit is a bit weird, since Kadokawa is explicitly saying they dont want their company to go to foreign companies. A Japanese company would naturally understand and respect the heritage of the content more than a foreign company.”

Where did they said that? Could you provide a link? I’m going of information that this article provide. So, if they have said that… then I will retract my statement.

“Oh and why is a long history of close partnership not a big factor? I would think having a great partnership already would be very beneficial in a merger or acquisition scenario.“

Cause long partnership doesn’t always benefit mergers… That something that Microsoft and Bethesda was throwing around during their acquisition.

This makes sense for Sony because the "monopoly" of Anime in the west is ending. Just this season 3 of the 5 most popular animes can be watched outside Crunchy (the only one "exclusives" being Blue Lock and ReZero) and from those 3 one isn't even on Crunchy (Bleach being exclusive to Disney owned services).

Netflix, Disney and Warner are already putting a lot of money not only to produce but to distribute anime. The "monopoly" was never a monopoly it was just an opportunity with no competition. Now that competition exists and the best interest for Sony should be to get their own anime to keep their platform relevant.

@DarthCvrle66 You didn't kick up a hornet's nest, rather you made a poorly informed comment and were corrected on it.

Funny that you think Microsoft give you more for less when 12 months of Premium - which allows you access to around 800 games - costs less than 12 months of GamePass Ultimate, which is around 500 games. Series X costs the same as a PS5 with a disc drive. Series X digital costs more money than a PS5 digital and lacks the option to add a drive. Series X/S expandable storage costs more for the same equivalent on PS5 (and lacks functionality outside the console too).

But sure, Microsoft are benevolent.

@GamingFan4Lyf All im saying is, if we look at past practices, MS has taken more former multiplat games and made them exclusive than Sony has done. Think Hellblade 2, Psychonauts 2, The Outer Wilds 2, Perfect Dark (Unless its confirmed that these last two are coming to PS or Nintendo).

Edit: Yes, you’re right about Psychonauts, i actually wasn't aware of that.

If this acquisition happens Sony......I want a good Tenchu reboot not that crappy Tenchu Z crap that was on the 360

No mention of how Kodokawa has 26 games in development. 20 console games and 6 mobile games anyway hopefully they wrap this deal up as soon as possible.

@AverageGamer You think a long great partnership is not a plus in a merger? We’ll just have to agree to disagree on that one.

Kadokawa may have not explicitly said it, you’re right and i’ve edited my comment accordingly. But they did express concern of foreign companies doing a hostile takeover. Im assuming Kadokawa has a reason why they specifically want Sony to acquire them, even though MS, Tencent and Kakao have shown interest in acquiring them.

@GamingFan4Lyf You’re right. My statement was incorrect and I have edited my comment. But end of the day, MS is making more former multiplats exclusive than Sony. Thats why i reacted to the commenter who showed concern about Sony and its multiplatform practices. He favoured MS in this deal, and i just wanted to clarify to him that MS is not always perfect with keeping IPs multiplatform themselves.

I really really really hope that from soft dosnt start making PS exclusives....
That would suck. It's already bad enough bloodborne is trapped on the ps4

@LavenderShroud there's 0 difference between Microsoft or Sony buying it... They're both massive faceless corporations that have no Intrest in you or the user experience at all. Only how they can maximise payout for shareholders

@Stickleman I actually don't think exclusives are always bad. Theres a certain level of production quality that can be achieved when studio can focus on just one platform. It may be why Bloodborne was one of the best games of its generation, as the developers could fully optimize it for the Playstation. Thats why i dont mind platforms to have their exclusives.

In this case however i would sympathize with people lamenting the likes of Elden Ring to become exclusive, since it is a multiplatform IP. It also has a larger audience and it would be disappointing if that audience was limited in the future.

@Shepherd_Tallon I imagine substantial lay offs

@Stickleman Kadokawa has a very large depository of anime IP, an artform originated in Japan and closely intwined with Japanese heritage and identity.

In a country where cultural pride is more significant, I think the difference of a Japanese corporation buying these IPs that are of great cultural value, or a foreign company owning them, and possibly changing or altering style or tone, might be a big difference to some.
Such changes might dilute the cultural authenticity, especially if western norms and culture is placed in favor of Japanese values. But to be fair, to some it might not matter.

Additionally, there’s a big cultural difference in the companies itself. It would generally be more difficult for an American company to manage a large Japanese company, simply because of big differences in culture and communication.

Ways of doing things are very different in these countries and western goals and decision making might be met with more opposition. While not impossible, it naturally comes with added complexity compared to a Japanese company merging with another. So not exactly 0 difference, i’d say.

@AverageGamer tencent is a chinese company no way will kadokawa sell to the chinese he wants the company to be in sony hands ...

@Stickleman there is a massive difference that even a blind man can see it..

@GamingFan4Lyf if you mean sony and pc games that will happen..xbox will be 100% excluded..

@Major_Player it’s more then video games though , even thought from software is part of it , that’s just a small part.

Honestly I see Sony being the front runner in this with a them wanting to sell the entire company , would ms even be interested in the anime portion of it?

@johnedwin I do think if this pushes through, a sequel to Elden Ring would still come to Xbox. Maybe as a timed exclusive, but i do think Sony will try not to disappoint the fans.

@LogicStrikesAgain Sony doesn’t care about fans being happy they care about selling PlayStation 😂 lol.

@Jay767 Well maybe they should pull an Xbox and only release on PS and PC, just like Hellblade 2 😜

Jokes aside, i don't think Sony would make it exclusive. Maybe timed. But hey, we’ll see.

@colonelkilgore
That Xbox "with the sprinkles" that's only 100 bucks cheaper than the PS5 Pro, does have a disk drive TBF.

@GeeForce ****ing bargain then! 🤣

Sony wants to strengthen their monopoly on the anime industry, I see. I just don't understand how things like this can be legal.

@ATaco
It's all good because: "but Microsoft..." 😀

@GeeForce @ATaco I must've missed something. Has this deal already been reviewed by regulators? In which ways was it deemed a monopoly?

@LogicStrikesAgain
Don't know if it's a monopoly or not but mentioning MS seems to be the way to address any doubts or issues.

@GeeForce Hmm, don't think that will fly with regulators though. They will scrutinize this deal regardless of what MS acquired in the past, im sure.

@LogicStrikesAgain
From experience with Microsoft buying out Activision, you can get by any restrictions or regulations if you throw enough money at it. Even if there is a penalty or fine, it is usually chump change compared to what you stand to gain from the acquisition. Sony owns Funimation and then later bought out Crunchyroll and now it wants Kadokawa? It's plain to see that Sony wants the absolute lion's share of the pie here. You might still trust in regulators doing their jobs but from recent events in the industry I've pretty much lost faith.

@LogicStrikesAgain
Indeed.

Though I was referring to the comments on here 🙃

@LogicStrikesAgain The concern of foreign takeover is more so probably from companies like Microsoft, Google, Apple, Netflix… etc or investor groups. Instead of companies like Tencent which already own shares… Again, I don’t see anything anywhere saying that Kadokawa want Sony specifically to acquire them. They seem fine with having anyone acquire them as long as they met their demands, but even then it doesn’t looks like no one want to meet their demands fully. Microsoft probably want just gaming, Sony wants just the anime and gaming, and who knows what Tencent wanted…

@colonelkilgore
Yeah, real bargain.

Still though, not quite as bad.
A fairer comparison would be a PS5 Pro with a disk drive, which would make the difference 200-250 bucks, rather than a 100 as you mentioned earlier.

@ATaco I dunno man, Japan has very strict antitrust laws. If it really creates a monopoly and is bad for competition, we will hear it soon enough from the competitors. It might be that the likes of Toei and Bamco will express their thoughts on the matter soon, if they dont agree with this deal and feel like it would negatively impact them.

Regarding the paying a fine comment, i dont think thats how it works though. Microsoft didn't have to pay a penalty or fine, they had to make changes in the deal to make it go through.

Likewise, if this deal leads to a monopoly they will have to make adjustments accordingly.

@GeeForce well if we’re gonna mention what the sparkly series x brings to the table that the pro doesn’t (a disk drive), maybe we should bring up the system architecture of the pro which is beyond the x (which is the actual reason it costs more) 🤷‍♂️

@breakneck Yes i know both Sony and Kadokawa already working together many times.

@ATaco "Sony wants to strengthen their monopoly on the anime industry, I see"

You can claim Sony has monopoly in anime industry when Sony completely owns popular / big anime studios like Sunrise, Toei, Mappa, Ufotable, Kyoto Animation, Madhouse, Trigger, or Production I.G and their Crunchyroll has more subs than Netflix, Disney+, Warner, and Amazon. Until those happen, this isn't a monopoly at all.

@DarthCvrle66 beat me to it lol

@colonelkilgore
Well now you're making some sense.

Better architecture as it should at 30%ish more monies.

@GeeForce 🤔 don’t think I wasn’t before tbh but whatevs 😏

@AverageGamer Actually, i think they were referring to Kakao, a South Korean company. As far as i understand Kadokawa is pushing Sony, because of concerns from a hostile takeover by Kakao.

However these might be speculations. And i will agree that there might be a possibility that Kadokawa is open to a buyout by foreign companies. I simply don't know. I still feel like Sony would be a better fit. But i respect your opinion in finding Tencent a better fit to acquire Kadokawa.

No idea why anyone even bothers to read articles put out by Takashi Mochizuki. He's spun no much verified garbage that it seems anything he writes is speculative at best.

@AdamNovice I remember years ago there was a blurb about Phil Spencer wanting to expand Microsoft’s Japanese footprint, and this may have been a discussion had back then. Likely fell apart pretty fast. As for tencent, I don’t see a Japanese firm being thrilled about a takeover unless it’s inflating its value exponentially. A Chinese company would censor and shutter anything that had any ounce of mature content, heck Nintendo’s partnership there just crapped out. So whatever the case, I’d rather Sony buy them than the other companies. That being said, sounds like Sony only wants part of it. So unless they’re willing to take losses and just get out, it likely won’t go through. But I’d wager they are.

No rumour? It is real now? Whelp. Ok were dead, goodbye games studios with IPs that will either continue, die or be ruined, staff will be let off, goodbye anime/manga/light novels and the state of them being continued, ruined or 'survive somehow', can't wait for bad localisation, bad censorship, bad continuing of series regardless of being untouched and just dropped later for whatever reason, was nice knowing you.

I mean it's better then just 1 studio/few IPs western gamers pay attention to as like 1% of the company Kadokawa is even if at all as From is Indie still aren't they? While Elden Ring they may own Kadokawa I assume here but not Dark Souls as that's Namco (unless Kadokawa has control over Namco I don't know). But even still.

No petition will save it.

@SuntannedDuck2 they proven in the past its just a name , under the sony banner they could just do demon souls or bloodborne, a successor to elden ring , a new ip all together. there doesn't need to be a dark souls 4 as the games aren't even really tied in with each other.

@Coffeeglitch i doubt ms would be interested in the entire company and just the game studio which they aren't going to part with as they want to sell the entire thing.

The only reasons I could see msft being legitimately interested in kadokawa are the following:

1. Kadokawa want to remain pretty much intact and as such would be a profitable, working company in Japan for msft. (Tango was closed largely due to the director leaving and there being tenuous management available to msft for tango in Japan)

2. EVERYTHING kadokawa have could be available on msfts future plans of 'everything is an Xbox if you subscribe'. Music, anime, games. All of it

I don't want that so I'd rather Sony have it. Sony the gaming developer wouldn't buy a company this big. Sony the entertainment company most certainly can and would benefit massively.

So my take - I think this is a dead deal.

The reason this hit the news was because Kadokawa wanted it in the press. This is Kadokawa forcing Sony's hand to purchase everything rather than break their assets up for as a smorgasbord. That and it's just increased the stock price by about 45%; based purely on the expectation/speculation that Sony would purchase the company.

This isn't likely to impress Sony execs (once again, we're talking Sony, not SIE); and neither would having to acquire all the non-anime/gaming assets that aren't performing.

I for one hope that it doesn't get picked up by Tencent or Kakao - or worse - Microsoft.

I think it's better for kadokawa to be bought out entirely, rather than partially. Coz it might be kinda useless without it's gaming and anime section, making little to no profit. So probably why it has to be acquired all together or none at all.

If they merged with kakao, would they be called kakaokawa?

@LavenderShroud better if Sony buys them IMO. MS would ruin the ethos of the Japanese company as the MS culture doesn’t understand Asia.

Would rather then go under Sony as they are Japanese. This acquisition could help bolster other Sony entertainment mediums. I also think they the Japanese government wouldn’t be as likely to protest if it were Sony.

@Oz_Who_Dat_Dare i disagree kadokawa wants sony to buy the company and remain on japanese hands and not let the chinese or koreans acquire the company.. also sony and fromsoft have a strong connection..

@johnedwin if that were the case - why would they be leaking to the media? One party leaking acquistion secrets (and they are corporate secrets) doesn't suggest a close, trustful relationship.

If Sony acquires it, we're cooked as both gaming and anime fans.

Sony buys from software... Makes a huge mistake marketing mistake with a AAA From software game...cuts it's losses and shutters the developer.. No more Dark souls for me

That's actually smart from them.
Kadokawa has plenty of business ventures that are not exactly raking money. So selling anime and gaming business only makes absolutely no sense for them since they are biggest moneymaker. Keeping rest only and they will be left with just bad business outlook.

So it's boom or bust. On the other hand if Sony actually bought them they would likely try to get rid of those unprofitable business ventures. Which means pretty substantial layoffs. Which would be hard since Japanese labour laws are pretty unforgiving.

This isn't a good thing because if they did seal the deal and buyout the whole lot yet Sony want specific parts they will shut down areas they don't want and that's bad

I hope the game studios owned by Kadokawa remain independent because Sony buying Kadokawa could be pretty bad for Nintendo. This is why I hope Nintendo asks the Japanese government to block Sony's acquisition of Kadokawa

https://gamerant.com/sony-kadokawa-proposed-acquisition-bad-news-nintendo-why/

@GADG3Tx87

Sony, like Microsoft, closed the Japanese studios, e.g. Japan Studios. Microsoft and Sony would be better off not buying Japanese gaming studios at all because PlayStation games sell very poorly in Japan

We criticized Microsoft for buying Zenimax Studios, then we criticized them again for buying ActiBlizzard. What Sony is planning on doing now is the same crap MS did before. Unless it's a small studio that have made games before and are proven to be worthy partners for Sony, I don't want to see any more big studio aquisitions that would only lead to more unnecessary layoffs and restricted work rules.

In the case they do buy them however, I better not see any playstation fanboys on here or anywhere else that were hating on FromSoft's games for being boring or inaccessible just suddenly praising them like they were all buddies the whole time. Can never stand hypocrites.

Would this mean more anime comes to crunchyroll? If so I'm for it 😎

Let's say they bought all of Kadokawa. Sony should make their own Genshin Impact or Wuthering Waves, stop chasing for the next Fortnite. Let it be available on other platforms but Sony gamers will have better perks.

Someone's going to buy them and I'd rather it was Sony than MS or Tencent.