SEGA Grant Merger Go-Ahead News
Chris Leyton
30/06/2004
Details on the recent SEGA board of directors meeting, granting approval for the SEGA-SAMMY merger…
Shareholders within SEGA Corporation have recently given the all-clear to the proposed merger between SEGA Corporation and Sammy Corporation, paving the way for the foundation of SEGA-SAMMY Holdings on October 1st.
A decision was made at SEGAâs recent meeting of its board of directors to purchase up to 5 billion yen of its series #5 unsecured convertible bonds, whilst the firm is currently considering holding a bondholders' meeting for the purpose of amending the terms and conditions to enable an early redemption and to redeem the outstanding Convertible Bonds. The decision to purchase the convertible bonds was taken at this stage to ensure the successful execution of such early redemption.
Under the current terms of the merger, each share of Sammy Corporation will be swapped for one share of SEGA-SAMMY Holdings, whilst each share of SEGA Corporation will be exchanged for 0.28 shares within SEGA-SAMMY Holdings â“ effectively granting Sammy shareholders control of nearly three-quarters of the voting stock.
As of tomorrow SEGAâs seven internal studios will be amalgamated back into a central studio, and whilst both SEGA and Sammy will operate as separate entities at first, plans have been announced to reorganise the organisation into four divisions (Pachinko and Pachislot, Amusement and Consumer games, Media Content and Network and Miscellaneous Operations) by March 2007.
Sammy president Hajime Satomi has confirmed that SEGAâs and Sammyâs brands will continue to operate independently, with business relating to arcade and consumer titles running under the SEGA name, whilst the Sammy brand will continue to operate all Pachinko and Pachislot related operations.
SEGA and Sammyâs combined income for the 2005 fiscal year will be expected to rise to 501 billion yen, making it one of the biggest game companies within Japan.