Chinese multinational technology conglomerate Tencent announced that it will be investing USD $264m in Japanese media company Kadokawa, Nikkei Asia reports.
According to the publicly available stock shareholder information, the investment amounts to ¥30m (around US$264m), wherein Sixjoy, a Hong Kong-based Tencent subsidiary, will buy 4.86 million shares for ¥6,170 per share. Said share amount is a 2.3% premium to its closing price on Friday. The agreement materialized on 29 October, and the transaction will take place between 15 to 26 of November.
Kadokawa describes the acquisition to aim for long-term growth and enhancement of corporate value by promoting a ‘global media mix’. This will focus on the constant creation and deployment of diverse collections of intellectual properties (IP). These include books, live-action films, anime, games, as well as User Generated Content (UGC) platforms.
This was not the first time the China-based conglomerate made an investment in any of Kadokawa’s assets. In 2016, Kadokawa announced that Tencent has acquired a 41% stake in Guangzhou-based Tianwen Kadokawa Animation and Comics from Changsha-based shareholder China South Publishing & Media Group. This makes Tencent the second-largest shareholder of Tianwen Kadokawa, with Kadokawa Corporation holding 49% and China South Publishing retaining 10%.
Sentiments within the anime community have risen to concern levels regarding this endeavor. For many, this is one of the many instances that large companies are capitalizing on the anime and Japanese media market. It should be noted that this August, Sony-owned Funimation fully acquired Crunchyroll, a previously WarnerMedia-owned media distribution and streaming service.
Founded in 1998, Tencent, a Chinese multinational conglomerate, now owns subsidiaries in the global market. This comprises various Internet-related services and products, including entertainment, artificial intelligence, and other technology.
A Japan-based media conglomerate, Kadokawa comprises companies that work on publishing, film, visuals, and cross-media. In the publishing scene, they produce books, bunkobon paperbacks, manga, and visual media magazines. The film and visuals sector of the group involves Japanese feature films and DVD sales of international films and anime.
Kadokawa has always ramped up its stance as one of the prime figures in Japanese media production, including support with the J-Novel Club regarding the light novel industry, and even opening an anime-themed hotel in Japan.
Source: Kadokawa Investor Relation Announcement, Nikkei Asia / Banner: © 1998 – 2021 Tencent; © KADOKAWA CORPORATION