Sony's strategic transformation: targeting IP acquisitions and intends to build an "entertainment comprehensiv

2025-10-04 21:49:00|Myriagame |source：minecraft skins

According to Nikkei Asia, Sony Group is planning to accelerate the pace of IP acquisitions to build itself into an "entertainment trading house".Sony will further acquire more IPs in games, movies, animation and other fields.Specifically in terms of gaming, Sony already has important shares in FromSoftware and Bandai Namco.

As a PlayStation console maker, Sony has been more inclined to expand content through investment rather than creating new IPs from scratch, a trend that extends beyond video games.For example, it has invested in Kakugawa Bookstore, which has a large number of novels for young readers.Over the past seven years, Sony's cumulative investment in IPs such as games, movies and animations has reached 1.9 trillion yen.

A Sony veteran said that the process of acquiring, developing and integrating business and IP is to enhance its value as an "entertainment trading company", which is similar to the development model of many large comprehensive trading companies in Japan (including Itochu, Mitsubishi, and Mitsui).

Nikkei reports:

Japanese conglomerate Sony Group is preparing to increase its IP acquisitions in the entertainment field after it listed its financial subsidiary independently on the Tokyo Stock Exchange on Monday.

This strategy is similar to the model of large comprehensive trading companies in Japan.But as investors' focus shifts to the entertainment business, Sony may need to explain more clearly the performance of its major investments to win investors' support.

Instead of incubating original IPs from scratch, Sony has adopted strategies to invest in IP holders, such as Bandai Namco, which owns the Gundam series, and Kakukawa, a publisher with a large number of best-selling teen novels.Over the past seven years, Sony's cumulative investment in IP has reached 1.9 trillion yen (about 12.8 billion US dollars), and has integrated the acquired IP and businesses with Sony's various business segments - including games, movies, animations, etc. - to maximize its value.

On September 25, Sony's American subsidiary and animation streaming platform Crunchyroll announced that it will launch the new platform "Crunchyroll Manga" in the United States and Canada on October 9, including Japanese comics such as "One Piece" and "Curse Back to War".If these comics are popular overseas, they may go directly into the film or game development process before the animation is adapted.

A Sony veteran described this "acquisition-development-integrating business and IP to create added value" model as an "entertainment trading company" strategy.This is similar to the large Japanese integrated trading companies (such as Itochu, Mitsubishi, and Mitsui), which have shifted their main business income from resource and commodity trading commissions to corporate and business investment returns.

"There is a gap between the company's current value and share price. Part of the reason may be that the company has not disclosed enough information to allow the outside world to accurately evaluate its entertainment business.' She raised Sony's rating to the highest '1 (buy)' in September."

Sony responded that the company will "strengthen information disclosure" in the future.

The positioning of cross-business collaboration as the core of growth also echoes the business model.In September, Sony announced the introduction of an internal talent search system called "Pollinator Network" to use generative AI to improve matching accuracy.The system has facilitated more than 200 sharing of professional experiences and opinions, including cases of applying gaming technology to film production.

In theory, the spin-off of Sony Financial's business will lead to a decline in Sony Group's stock price, which is equivalent to the market value of Sony Financial Group.Although Sony's stock price hit an all-time high of 4,578 yen on September 25, the market value gap between Sony and U.S. rival Disney could widen to about 1 trillion yen.

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