Sony confirms its intention to acquire FromSoftware parent company Kadokawa, but one analyst says the publisher could 'lose its independence' if the deal goes through

1 week ago 3

Sony has confirmed it has "made an initial statement of intent" to acquire Kadokawa Group
One analyst suggests that Kadokawa "will lose its independence" if Sony acquires the publisher
Some Kadokawa employees are reportedly excited about the prospect of an acquisition

Sony has confirmed its interest in acquiring FromSoftware's parent company Kadokawa Group.

Last month, it was reported that Sony was looking to acquire the Japanese publishing company and owner of the Elden Ring developer, with two sources familiar with the ongoing matter claiming that the talks between the PlayStation owner and Kadokawa were ongoing.

Now, speaking in a recent interview with Yahoo Japan, Sony was able to verify the rumors but refused to talk in detail about the acquisition.

"It is true that we have made an initial statement of intent," Sony said (via IGN and translated via DeepL). "We would appreciate it if you would allow us to refrain from further comment."

According to a new report from Bunshun (translated by Automaton via GamesRadar) following Sony's confirmation, one veteran Kadokawa employee claimed that others in the company are "thrilled at the prospect of an acquisition" as there are a "number of employees who are dissatisfied" with the administration under CEO Takeshi Natsuno.

"They expect that if Sony were to acquire the company, they would get rid of the president first," the employee said.

In the same report, however, one economic analyst suggested that a possible acquisition of Kadokawa would not be beneficial for the company.

"Kadokawa will lose its independence, and management will become stricter," said Takahiro Suzuki.

"If they want to keep developing their business as freely as they have until now, [the acquisition] would be a bad choice. They’d have to be prepared for publications that don’t lead to IP creation being put under scrutiny."