Konami set to merge with or acquire Capcom

M

Megadrive1988

Veteran
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000101&sid=a31Bxym5Bqtc&refer=japan

Konami, Capcom May Be Next as Japan Game Companies Seek Mergers

Sept. 16 (Bloomberg) -- Konami Corp., Japan's fourth-largest maker of video games, and Capcom Co., the sixth biggest, may be next in line as game companies look for mergers to help raise earnings amid rising costs, analysts say.

In the past 18 months, four mergers have been announced in the industry totaling $4.47 billion, according to Bloomberg data. Bandai Co. in May agreed to buy Namco Ltd., while Square Enix Co. last month bid for Taito Corp. The companies are showcasing their latest software at today's Tokyo Game Show.

``Rising costs and falling profit margins will speed up consolidation in the industry,'' said Michihiro Ishizuka, Konami's executive officer in charge of game software business in Tokyo. ``Buying companies with know-how and infrastructure for online businesses would make a lot of sense for us.''

Japanese software makers are seeking partners in the $21 billion global video game market to share rising development costs for new consoles from Sony Corp. and Microsoft Corp. Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3 consoles will offer higher- definition images and faster speeds.

``Companies like Taito, Bandai and Namco are not merging because they are facing financial ruin,'' said Takashi Oya, an analyst with Deutsche Securities Co. in Tokyo. ``They are looking three years down the road and thinking this is the right strategic choice.''

Namco's stock has soared 29 percent since the announcement, while Bandai has gained 14 percent. Shares of Taito gained 12 percent while Square Enix rose 6.5 percent after its bid.

Sales in the global gaming industry, including revenue from online games, personal computers, portable devices, and software, may be worth 2.3 trillion yen ($21 billion) this year from 2.1 trillion yen a year ago, according to Tokyo-based market researcher Enterbrain Inc.

`Attack Mode'

Tokyo-based Konami, whose game software business accounted for more than 50 percent of its operating profit last year, bought Hudson Soft Co., a Japanese maker of online and video games and mobile content such as ring tones, in April. It also took a stake in toymaker Takara Co., game software designer Genki Co., and People Co., Japan's largest operator of fitness centers.
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In the past 15 years, seven of the top 10 Japanese game makers were either created through acquisitions or through mergers, according to Bloomberg data.

Target

Capcom, Japan's sixth-largest game software maker, may be a target for a takeover, according to analyst Hiromu Takada.

The Osaka-based company said last month its game business will report a loss in the current quarter because there won't be any major new titles released in the period. Capcom's market capitalization is 66.15 billion yen, 17 times smaller than its nearest rival Sega Sammy Holdings Inc.

``Capcom is probably the most likely candidate for acquisition or merger out of the remaining large companies. The company is in a difficult situation financially,'' said Takada, an analyst at Cosmo Securities Co. in Tokyo. ``The most effective of possible combinations for Capcom would be if Sega Sammy bought the company.''

Capcom has not been involved in any merger or acquisition in its 20-year history, according to spokesman Ryosuke Tanaka.
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Thanks for the news. Interesting. Maybe we will se Snake in an RE game ;)

MGS: Zombie Attack!
 
NO NO NO NO NO NO!!!! NO.

I'd much rather Konami and Capcom stay seperate. They have extremely difference perspectives and focuses in their games. Their styles are VERY different and very unique, I don't want things get mushed around by having them fused. If it's solely economic, I wouldn't mind as much, I think, but I'd rather they stay seperate.
 
The only change I see happening if a merger between Konami and Capcom goes through is more multiplatform games from both. We've seen RE5 coming to both PS3 and Xbox 360 and will likely see MGS4, SH4, ZOE3, DMC4 coming to both platforms if a merger happens.
 
µCOM-4 said:
The only change I see happening if a merger between Konami and Capcom goes through is more multiplatform games from both. We've seen RE5 coming to both PS3 and Xbox 360 and will likely see MGS4, SH4, ZOE3, DMC4 coming to both platforms if a merger happens.
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Did you see the MGS4 presentation? I think that one at least is staying exclusive.
SH games are already multi-platform.
 
london-boy said:
Did you see the MGS4 presentation? I think that one at least is staying exclusive.
SH games are already multi-platform.
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Well that's probably because Konami are independent right now. If they merge with Capcom, it might become muliplatform. MGS has already become multiplatform since both GC and Xbox have MGS games.
 
µCOM-4 said:
Well that's probably because Konami are independent right now. If they merge with Capcom, it might become muliplatform. MGS has already become multiplatform since both GC and Xbox have MGS games.
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And PC.

But seeing the MGS4 presentation, how Playstation-centric it was and with all those references to Cell, i'm thinking it might take a while to convince Kojima to start working on another version. He didn't seem to happy to have MGS2 ported to the Xbox.
 
Well it depends if it's the same analyst who predicted MS would buy Nintendo, or if it's the same predicting EA would buy half the other productions houses in the world.:devilish:
 
I think I'd prefer a Sega Sammy Capcom :p Besides, Capcom and Sega were rather friendly in the Saturn and Dreamcast eras...
 
Isn't Metal Gear under Kojimas (new) dev department now? It seems as though that Konami is a publisher now instead of makers of Metal Gear.
 
BlueTsunami said:
Isn't Metal Gear under Kojimas (new) dev department now? It seems as though that Konami is a publisher now instead of makers of Metal Gear.
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Doesn't change much, Kojima always did his own thing and Konami always let him do his own thing. Which sometimes is not a good thing, i mean, the headaches i got from MGS2, with that "story"... I still remember them...
 
london-boy said:
Doesn't change much, Kojima always did his own thing and Konami always let him do his own thing. Which sometimes is not a good thing, i mean, the headaches i got from MGS2, with that "story"... I still remember them...
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ahahhahaha...I loved those twists. I still sit in awe as the computer in Metal Gear Solid 2 explains the S3 system (basically filtering information and creating their own reality, which was part of the plot). I personally love convoluted stories (when there made to be that way) that create an alternate bizarro reality (when compared to ours). This is what MGS is to me and I love MGS2 for it.
 
scificube said:
God I hope this isn't true.
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The article is pure speculation mind you.

Also, it is an evident step for (at least) Capcom to merge. The last few years there has been a merger trend in Japan which saw almost all publishers merge. Square Enix, Namco Bandai, Sega Sammy,... not to forget companies like Taito and Hudson being swallowed. Konami was the biggest publisher in Japan for some while, but now they have lost that position due merging competitors. Konami might want Capcom to increase output and revenue, Capcom might want Konami for more stable financial funding.

I wonder what will happen to companies such as Atlus and Takara in the near future...
 
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