Sony has officially announced its intention to acquire the Japanese conglomerate Kadokawa, and despite the potential loss of independence, Kadokawa's employees are surprisingly enthusiastic about the prospect. Dive deeper to understand why they're looking forward to this corporate merger!

Sony And Kadokawa Still In Talks

Sony has made it clear that it is in the process of acquiring Kadokawa, a major player in Japanese publishing. While both entities are still negotiating and no final agreement has been reached, the buzz around this potential acquisition has sparked diverse reactions.

Economic analyst Takahiro Suzuki, speaking to Weekly Bunshun, suggested that this move would primarily benefit Sony. As Sony shifts its focus from electronics to the entertainment sector, it struggles with creating its own intellectual properties (IPs). Acquiring Kadokawa would allow Sony to "incorporate Kadokawa’s content and strengthen it." Kadokawa boasts a rich portfolio of IPs, including successful titles in gaming, anime, and manga such as Oshi no Ko, Dungeon Meshi (Delicious in Dungeon), and the critically acclaimed game Elden Ring from FromSoftware.

However, this acquisition would mean that Kadokawa would lose its independence and be subject to Sony's stricter management. As reported by Automaton West, "Kadokawa will lose its independence, and management will become stricter. 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."

Kadokawa Employees Reportedly Optimistic On Acquisition

Interestingly, despite the potential downsides, Kadokawa's employees are reportedly optimistic about the acquisition. Interviews conducted by Weekly Bunshun revealed that many employees are not opposed to the idea and even see it in a positive light. When asked about their feelings on the matter, they responded with a resounding, "Why not Sony?"

This optimism is partly fueled by dissatisfaction with the current leadership under President Takeshi Natsuno. A veteran Kadokawa employee shared, "The people around me are thrilled at the prospect of an acquisition by Sony. That’s because there’s a certain number of employees who are dissatisfied with the Natsuno administration, which didn’t even bother to hold a press conference after peoples’ personal information was leaked in the cyberattack. They expect that if Sony were to acquire the company, they would get rid of the president first."

This sentiment stems from a significant cyberattack earlier in June by the hacker group BlackSuit, which resulted in a ransomware attack and the theft of over 1.5 terabytes of internal data, including legal documents, user-related information, and employees' personal details. The lack of a robust response from President Natsuno during this crisis has led to widespread dissatisfaction among the staff.