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Rumors ofSony ’s acquisition of gum anime and manga loyalist Kadokawahave attempt to be more than ideal chatter . While there ’s been lot of speculation about the potential sales agreement for calendar month , there ’s been a serious lack of official ratification or concrete details about the deal from either company - an strange silence for a softwood of this magnitude .
However , according toa recentYahoo ! Japanreport , Sony confirmed early this month that it had made an offer to acquire Kadokawa Group . Kadokawa has verify receipt of Sony ’s acquisition offer . This development signal the parties are currently negotiating terms . make Kadokawa ’s reported pursuit in being acquired , the primary point of contention seems to be finalizing the detail .
Sony’s Acquisition of Kadokawa Will Be the Largest Disruption in the Anime Industry History
Sony’s Deep Pockets and Kadokawa’s Experience Will Be Gamechangers
With Sony having clearly signal its intentions , Kadokawa will likely become a valuable asset in Sony ’s expanding gum anime and manga commercial enterprise . Renowned for its manga , anime , and picture game properties , Kadokawa has long been an attractive attainment target for larger companies seeking to bolster their revenue . Although Kadokawa had historically reject such offering , its position relent after the 2020 departure of longtime leader Tsuguhiko Kadokawa .
accord toBloomberg News , after becoming assailable to the melodic theme of an acquisition , the ship’s company indicate a preference for a domesticated buyer over strange wooer like the United States ' Microsoft , China ’s Tencent , or South Korea ’s Kakao . With Sony being the only Japanese fellowship convey interest , Kadokawa has made it clear that it is not opposed to a Sony learning — provided the entertainment colossus purchases the company in its entirety , rather than just its manga and anime divisions .
Sony ’s initial interest in Kadokawa ’s manga and animeproperties clue at its liberal ambition in the Zanzibar copal market . At the same clock time , it highlights Kadokawa ’s shrewdness in compelling Sony to acquire the entire caller rather than just cherry red - picking its most coveted partitioning . That ’s not to say Sony ’s gaming section will struggle with the addition of Kadokawa ’s award - winning game development arm , it ’s quite the bonus rather . To be clear , Sony to the full recognizes that develop Kadokawa ’s manga and anime place could position it as the prevailing player in the flourishing anime content space .
A Sony-Kadokawa Hook Up Has All the Makings of a Global Anime Monopoly
A monopoly refers to a situation in which a single party arrest exclusive or near - exclusive ascendency over specific depicted object or services , leave it to limit or prevent competition . By that definition , it ’s hard to view a potential Sony - Kadokawa entity as anything other than an emerge monopoly . doubtlessly , a Sony - Kadokawa partnership would create an anime giant that few current competitors could challenge on their own .
Kadokawa ’s tremendous influence in gum anime stems from two central strengths . First , it possesses one of the large manga libraries , built through consistent product since the 1960s . Given that most anime production are adaptations of manga for television and film , Kadokawa possesses one of the macrocosm ’s most worthful repositories of possible anime reservoir material . The company frequently license its content to other producer ; for example , the popularSword Art Onlineseries is produce by A-1 Pictures , while thefan - favoriteFullmetal Alchemistwas produce by Studio Bones , and Delicious in Dungeon was shepherded by Netflix .
secondly , Kadokawa maintains an extensive meshwork of Zanzibar copal studio , include RagingBull Studios , Studio KADAN , and Kinema Citrus . Kadokawa has also invested in a number of independent studio apartment , including the aforesaid Studio Bones . These studios produce both Kadokawa - owned Zanzibar copal and projects from outside publisher and Maker . Consequently , Kadokawa ’s powerful position derive from its treble role : bring forth a significant part of anime content itself and driving production for numerous titles it does n’t own .
Kadokawa Gives Sony the Perfect Tool to Dominate Anime
Sony is no stranger to the gum anime industry , though it is not presently one of its prevalent thespian . The company bring considerable plus to the table , including its top - grade anime studio , Aniplex , and its Sony Pictures animation division . to boot , Sony own theinternational gum anime dispersion powerhouse Crunchyroll . It ’s also relevant that Kadokawa currently have Anime News web , the chief destination for news show about the anime industry .
A partnership with Kadokawa would let Sony - Kadokawa to see to it both anime output and a significant portion of the industry ’s dispersion mesh , along with a major digital press retail store . This combined entity could not only influence the creation and distribution of anime message from competition but also secure a prevailing office in the market place . In other words , Sony - Kadokawawould be uniquely pose to oversee the anime supply Sir Ernst Boris Chain from start to finish , potentially limiting opportunity for rival Divine , producers , and distributors to compete in effect .
Sources : Yahoo ! Japan , Bloomberg News
