Sony will be acquiring a fresh load of shares in Japanese entertainment giant Kadokawa and will soon own 10 per cent of the company.
On January 7th, 2025, the PlayStation giant will be buying 12,054,100 new shares at Y4,146 per share. This will cost Y49.98 billion ($31.7 million) and will result in Sony owning 9.68 per cent of Kadokawa stock. Before, the firm owned 2.01 per cent.
When the transaction occurs, Sony will be Kadokawa’s biggest shareholder, though its share ownership does come behind Korea Securities Depository – Samsung and The Master Trust Bank of Japan, which own 10.01 per cent and 9.76 per cent respectively. However, Kadokawa says that these two firms own company stock as trust property, so it reckons they are not major shareholders or its largest shareholders.
This follows reports that Sony was looking to acquire Kadokawa outright. Both companies addressed the matter and it appears that – for now at least – Sony is not buying Kadokawa and the firm will remain independent.
The deal will reportedly result in the two companies collaborating to adapt Kadokawa IP into live-action film and TV shows, as well as work together on anime projects and expand distribution of Kadokawa anime.
“We are very pleased to conclude this capital and business alliance agreement with Sony,” Kadokawa CEO Takeshi Natsuno said.
“This alliance is expected to not only further strengthen our IP creation capabilities, but also increase our IP media mix options with Sony’s support for global expansion, allowing us to deliver our IP to more users around the world. We are confident that this will greatly contribute to maximising the value of our IP and increasing our corporate value in the mid- to long-term. We intend to do our utmost to ensure that our collaborative efforts with Sony produce great results in the global market.”
Sony president, COO and CFO Hiroki Totoki added: “Through this capital and business alliance, we will become the largest shareholder of Kadokawa, which consistently creates a wide variety of IP, including publications and books, such as light novels and comics, as well as games and anime. By combining Kadokawa’s extensive IP and IP creation ecosystem with the strengths of Sony, which has promoted the global expansion of a wide range of entertainment, including anime and games, we plan to work closely together to realise Kadokawa’s ‘Global Media Mix’ strategy, aimed at maximising the value of its IP, and Sony’s long-term vision, ‘Creative Entertainment Vision.’”