Sony Sells 9.5 Million Shares Of Square Enix

Kingdom Hearts 2.5 Final Mix HD.

This will be the first time Kingdom Hearts 2 Final Mix+ will be available in the US.

Also this:

The Company forecasts that actual business results from its Digital Entertainment Segment substantially
fall below its plan primarily due to slow sales of major console game titles in North American and European
markets. The Company is also experiencing sluggish performance of its arcade machine business. In
addition to these factors, the Company expects to incur extraordinary loss about loss from restructuring in
the settlement of the account for its fiscal year ending March 31, 2013, as described below

Due to the above-mentioned factors, the Company has revised downward its consolidated results
forecasts of net sales, operating income, ordinary income and net income for the fiscal year ending March
31, 2013.

Source: http://www.hd.square-enix.com/130326.pdf

So it isn't all sunshine and puppy dogs at SE. At least the last year.

Back to the original point of the thread, I think this move is an indictment of Sony more than SE. It doesn't take someone with a business degree to realize they've been cutting back for years.

Remember the "Sony Style" stores? Swing and a miss. No one wants to buy an overpriced Bravia TV with specs that don't compare to those of an equally/lower priced competitor's. They tried to live off of their name and thought if they rebranded themselves as high quality and highly fashionable then people would buy it. They have PlayStation, they have Sony Picture Studios, but the rest of their consumer electronics products are really overpriced failures.

Their e-books were awful, ultimately amazon and B&N put an axe in that operation. Vaio laptops tried to be Apple...consumers know a $2000 Vaio laptop with Windows is not really any different than an $800 HP. The same could be said about their MP3 players, cameras, audio equipment, you name it...

SE is a game developer, they'll keep making games despite the fact someone sold their stock. There's nothing to stop Microsoft from buying more shares and lobbying for exclusive titles if they're willing to pay for it and feel it makes fiscal sense. If Microsoft scores exclusive rights to something like, ohhh I don't know, a full HD remake of FF7, I'm relatively certain that die hard fans who don't own an Xbox would go out and buy one. Get a fancy aluminum box, some artwork, maybe a cheap moogle trinket you could get in a gumball machine for $.25, sell it in a collector's edition $99. That scam usually works for extra profits, right?

Now again, I'm not saying SE is in top notch fiscal shape (who really is nowadays?). This doesn't help, but it really isn't as much of a reflection on them as people think it may be.

IMO the company is not managed well. And no it doesn't take a business major to understand that. They could turn it around with good leadership though.

You're linking reports from their 2012 fiscal year. I'm not sure if you're HELP I AM TRAPPED IN 2006 PLEASE SEND A TIME MACHINE or what.


Please tell me all about your expertise in stocks and keep backpedaling when you've made incorrect statements.

Actually, how's this. When SE goes under, come back to me and tell me about how bad they did in their 2013 fiscal year.

Nevermind. Not worth the effort.

While you are correct in that it is more of a Sony problem than it is a SE problem, the point I was making is that it WILL have a impact on SE finances. The sale of the stock was obviously not the only reason for the fall it was also the lack of sales on a very hyped product or products. Sony selling share has a bigger impact than if McDonald's sold 9 million shares and also who bought those shares.
The article also pointed out that Sony worked with SE and was used to help fund future endeavors. It is a blow to SE and I hope they are able to bounce back but last few years have been rough.... how much assets you think SE had to get rid of to show a profit last year?

I didn't view the previous 2012 link, but in reviewing the 2013 Fiscal Report, it appears SE was in better shape in 2012 lol :x

I'm no business expert but when you lose 10 billion yen in a year. Things are not going that well.

Again that is just for a year I never said they are going bankrupt. They are just struggling at the moment.

No ***, that was the year that ended on 3/31/2013.

You show me where they are making a profit. Then I'll say they are doing well. Until then they are struggling.

It never has been managed well, going all the way back to the 80's when it made a racing game for the NES. Final Fantasy was dubbed such because the company believed at the time it was quite possibly the last game they were going to produce.

Their main problem/one of the exceptional things about SE, is they take too many risks.

They make products that bomb ex:Dirge of Cerebus, FFXIV 1.0, Secret of Evermore, and who can forget Spirits Within.

They make games that are critically acclaimed but do not sell well ex: Tomb Raider Reboot, Deus Ex reboot, SaGa, Just Cause and Front Mission Franchises.

Occasionally they make games that are both critically acclaimed and great sellers: Dragon QuestV-X, Final Fantasy VI-XII, Legend of Mana franchise and Bravely Default.

edit: All of which are great games in their own rights.

They had a great run from 97 to 07' and have had troubles the last 7yrs but nothing that any other developer and publisher hasn't faced with cancelling projects due to streamlining costs. 2008 when the economy took a nose dive, hit the Video Game industry hard, a lot of jobs and projects were lost and a lot companies still haven't recovered from it.

So in some respects they're not doing as bad as people make it out to be.

What would be interesting is if say a company like Nintendo which has more money then they let on, comes in and buys up that 8-10% of Square Enix.

http://massively.joystiq.com/2014/02/05/final-fantasy-xiv-provides-square-enix-profitable-2013/

Literally said it in my first post.

I enjoyed Spirits Within, to an extent...

On the note of SE being managed like ***...

http://www.polygon.com/2013/3/26/4148094/square-enix-ceo-yoichi-wada-resigns

http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/24/hiromichi-tanaka-leaves-square-enix/

I believe have had a big impact on SE changing.

Personally glad they're both gone. Good riddance.

http://www.siliconera.com/2014/03/31/bravely-defaults-success-west-making-square-enix-rethink-jrpgs/


Yosuke Matsuda, new ceo.



Yoichi Wada, former ceo.



There's been a total shift in SE lately, we'll see where it takes them.

I haven't back pedaled, SE has been in the red for years. They are still in the red, and will continue to be. Where did I backpedal?

Not going back to arguing with the most stubborn poster on the entire forums. If you don't remember what you posted, forget it.

Hi pot this is pan, stop calling the kettle black.

how do people think this could possible have anything to do with SE and not everything to do with sony much to vast business? they are involved in every market, and most of them are markets that aren't doing well. their tv's, stero, computers, and phones don't sell (even though i like their phones) because they can't compete with the massive number of new companies innovating at a better rate than they can. they've focused on selling ps3 and 4's and low profit just to win console wars.


regardless of that, sony and square will be around for awhile. they (most likely sony) will probably have to condense their business model and focus on a fewer number of products. even if square loses half of it's value, the odds of them going under are unimaginable. if capcom can stay in the game, square is set for the next hundred years.

Its true that is a reflection on Sony moreso than SE. But who will it affect more in the longterm? SE. Sony has walked away with a profit, SE didn't get anything but a stock hit.

all I gotta say is Thank GOD their mobile division with their over priced hacked ports and shameful I.A.P's has tanked hard on them, and Bravely Default has blown them away in regards to sales.

cause honestly, SE was starting to get too full of themselves, they NEEDED to get their *** brused they NEEDED to loose money. Cause now it finally looks like they're pulled their heads out of their *** and can get back to making games that made them beloved in the first place. That, or die off and let someone else do it.

Matsuda is a nice guy but you can clearly tell that he's following someone's will rather than his own. The company gained more by the loss of Wada himself rather than the fact that Matsuda specifically replaced him.

Also, just to be blunt, mentioning Matsuda as an example of change within SE is the shallowest example of change you can give about SE. SEA and SEE (which is actually what matters to the huge majority of the posters of these forums) have seen more changes than SEJ has, and much bigger ones. And no, none of these changes are the result of Matsuda's actions.

Regarding Tanaka, while he had some very questionable opinions/visions, he was still what we would call in French a "Man" when it comes to video game business. He's respected by all, what uninformed players may think is irrelevant in the end.

There has been a shift for about a year, but the shift has nothing to do with SEJ itself outside of FFXIV, absolutely nothing, 0, nada.

So SONY's shares were bought by SMBC Nikko Securities...I have no idea who they are, so no clue what that means.

But back to FF, could this parting from Sony endanger FF presence on their consoles in the future?

No

Its an investment bank. For now, it doesn't mean anything other than SE has a new majority investor that is not directly involved in their line of business (assuming Sony was, indeed, the majority).

Doubt this sale will change anything, it's merely money moving places, the actual partnership and business practice remain the same.

The only thing that could endanger SE at all is FFXV at this point. From what I have heard, this project is even more dangerous than FFXIV was.