Sony's Acquisition of Kadokawa Has Changed Direction

The news about Sony Acquiring FromSoftware Parent Company Kadokawa has taken a new turn. The Japanese Government has halted a takeover bid that would have made them the conglomerate's largest shareholder after they invested 50 billion yen in shares. So Sony has apparently changed its mind about the speculations that have been circulating about its potential takeover of Kakokawa, particularly their successful divisions such as Anime and FromSoftware (the latter of which has just announced ELDEN RING NIGHTREIGN at The Game Awards 2024).

Sony believes that Kadokawa has a vast array of projects that fail to engage the broader audience. And with almost 10% of Kadokawa's total shares under its control, Sony will be able to have considerable influence over future choices. The two businesses have described their partnership as a "capital and business alliance" that will permeate their respective industries. Everything from video games to comics, anime, manga, and more is fair game.

According to Sony's President Hiroki Totoki, "By combining Kadokawa's extensive IP and IP creation ecosystem with the strength of Sony, we plan to work closely to complete Kadokawa's 'Global Media Mix' strategy, aimed at maximizing the value of its IP and Sony's long-term vision, 'Creative Entertainment Vision.'" This statement highlights Sony's role in promoting the global expansion of various forms of entertainment, such as video games and anime.

All these talks about Sony's acquisition of Kadokawa have led Elden Ring fans to believe that this could be a sign that FromSoftware will limit itself to PlayStation exclusives. But with all these speculations, Kadokawa has confirmed that they will continue working with companies like Bandai Namco on projects like Elden Ring. Nothing will be changing at this point despite Sony's investment and ownership of 10% of Kadokawa's total shares.

Nevertheless, as much as we know Sony, they may eventually exert control over the publication rights of IP across all platforms, meaning they may decide how and where these works are passed on. Kadokawa has massive anime properties like Re:Zero and KonoSuba. With Aniplex and Crunchyroll, Sony has already risen to the very top of the anime business.

With Kadokawa's Anime division under their belt, they would be unstoppable in that market. It's not just anime; the same goes for titles like Bloodborne, Elden Ring, and Dark Souls from FromSoftware. Even though it's premature to make any judgments at this stage, the investment documents' legal wording acknowledges this potential.