Sony Emerges as Major Shareholder in Kadokawa, Strengthening Alliance with FromSoftware Through Elden Ring Collaboration

After much speculation and buzz surrounding the possible acquisition of FromSoftware’s parent company, Kadokawa Corporation, by gaming giant Sony, the two companies have finally put the rumors to rest. Instead of a full buyout, they have entered into what they’re calling a “strategic capital and business alliance.” Essentially, this means Sony will become the largest shareholder in Kadokawa, with the intention of deepening their collaborative efforts.

The chatter started back in late November when Reuters first reported on the potential deal. Both parties quickly admitted there was interest from Sony, the powerhouse behind PlayStation, but at the time, Kadokawa said it hadn’t yet made a decision about a takeover.

Now, we know that instead of a simple acquisition, they’re going for a strategic partnership, as highlighted by Gematsu. What does this partnership entail? For starters, Sony is set to purchase over 12 million new shares from Kadokawa, valued at around 50 billion yen, by January 2025. This will bring Sony’s stake in Kadokawa to approximately 10%, adding to what they had already acquired back in 2021.

In their joint statement, Kadokawa and Sony emphasized their history of collaboration and expressed a desire to enhance their cooperative ventures. The idea is to maximize the value of both companies’ intellectual properties (IP) on a global scale. This alliance paves the way for possible joint investments in content, discovering new creators together, and promoting deeper media integrations of their respective IPs.

The specifics of this partnership are exciting. They aim to explore adapting Kadokawa’s IP into global live-action films and TV series, co-produce anime, expand the distribution of Kadokawa’s works through Sony’s network, and broaden the reach of Kadokawa’s games. Additionally, they hope to nurture talents for virtual production and make their popular media available to a wider audience worldwide.

Sony’s president, COO, and CFO, Hiroki Totoki, shared that by becoming the largest shareholder of Kadokawa, Sony hopes to merge Kadokawa’s rich IP portfolio, which includes novels, comics, games, and anime, with Sony’s strong history of global entertainment expansion. Their joint objective is to support Kadokawa’s ‘Global Media Mix’ strategy and align it with Sony’s own ‘Creative Entertainment Vision.’

Kadokawa’s CEO, Takeshi Natsuno, expressed optimism about the alliance. He believes it will not only bolster their IP creation capabilities but also provide more opportunities for the global media mix, thanks to Sony’s backing.

So, what are your thoughts on this developing partnership between Sony and Kadokawa? We’d love to hear your opinions!