Microsoft poised to buy SEGA ?
Are you an avid Xbox 360 gamer? If so, chances are you are also a member of the ‘old’ SEGA faithful.
It’s no secret that when SEGA fell out of the hardware market, most of the devout fans of ‘home of the hedgehog’ pledged allegiance to the Xbox brand. In part due to the early launch titles for the original Xbox - the classics ‘Panzer Dragoon Orta’ and ‘Jet Grind Radio’. Both niche titles brought the SEGA faithful over to Microsoft’s house for a party.
Much has changed over recent years though, with SEGA upping their release schedule across not just the Xbox brand, but also the Playstation and to a lesser extent, Nintendo consoles. This rather bulky release schedule helped SEGA rise from the ashes to become a once more successful part of the gaming front.
So it’s no surprise that rumours are once again circulating that Microsoft may be about to make a move for SEGA (now SEGA Sammy Corp). It’s certainly not the first time we’ve heard about such a move - the last mention of it being back in early 2004 when it was speculated upon on many industry sites such as The Register and Gamespot. When you think about it, such a move would make perfect sense.
Microsoft are expected to make a ’shocking and desperate’ announcement at this years E3 - all we know is that it will be software related and nothing to do with hardware. It’s also no secret that Microsoft has had a very hard time in Japan with the 360 - SEGA might be the very company to help turn that around.
SEGA has a huge back catalogue of titles that could be relied upon to help strengthen the Redmond giant in the land of the rising sun. Titles like Sonic, Daytona, Virtua Fighter, Sega Rally and of course the Panzer Dragoon series all have a serious following over there and having those exclusive to the Xbox platform would be a sure fire boost to the Xbox over the next few years.
SEGA Sammy shares have taken a battering over the last two years, dropping from a high of 2050,40yn down to 1020,00yn this week - that effectively halves the market value of the group making it an ideal takeover target.
A buyout of SEGA Sammy would certainly be far cheaper than trying to take on Yahoo and would position Microsoft well for the release of the next Xbox console.
We’ve contacted Microsoft to ask if there is any truth to the rumour, but expect the usual ‘we do not comment on rumour and speculation’ in response.
Roll on E3!
Posted by Bleem - June 13th, 2008 -
June 13th, 2008 at 11:02 am
[…] bestgames wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptAre you an avid Xbox 360 gamer? If so, chances are you are also a member of the ‘old’ SEGA faithful. It’s no secret that when SEGA fell out of the hardware market, most of the devout fans of ‘home of the … […]
June 13th, 2008 at 12:39 pm
Won’t happen simply because look at how successful Mario and Sonic at the Olympics was in terms of profitability. If anything I wouldn’t be suprised if Sega SAmmy buys out a THQ quite frankly
June 13th, 2008 at 2:49 pm
[…] MS to buy Sega? Depending the price it may be a smart move. Sonic and Virtua Fighter would IP worth getting ahold of even though Sonic hasn’t made a decent game in years. Man, that blue headed hedgehog can sell games. […]
June 13th, 2008 at 3:14 pm
Hey you rumor spreader… you started with a very weird mistake at the beginning, claiming Jet Grind Radio and PDO as launch titles for the original Xbox.
That’s not only wrong but you could have double checked it at Wikipedia.
Doesn’t back your reliability up too much, does it?
June 13th, 2008 at 3:59 pm
@mX
Perhaps I should have said something like “early releases” rather than “launch titles” - only a matter of weeks in it though so I don’t see why your comment is relevant. Tekken didn’t arrive on PS until months after the console launched, yet folk still refer to it as a launch title - get my drift?
Move along..
June 13th, 2008 at 5:00 pm
[…] Fuente | Xbox 360 Wire Tags: E3, Microsoft, rumores, sega […]
June 13th, 2008 at 11:14 pm
Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games
Megadrive on Virtual Console
Both these prove the “lesser extent” statement for Nintendo consoles is incorrect. Furthermore, it also shows “having those exclusive to the Xbox platform” is a load of dingo’s kidneys.
June 14th, 2008 at 12:21 am
Personally, I think it would be dumb for Sega to go anywhere exclusively. Sonic makes a lot on Nintendo, while their PS360 games also generally sell well(like Condemned). I think deep down inside, Sega wants to get back into hardware. After all, didn’t they recently update the copyright for the Dreamcast?
June 14th, 2008 at 11:30 pm
[…] Source: XBOX360Wire.co.uk […]
June 15th, 2008 at 6:53 am
[…] Rumor: Microsoft to buy Sega? We think not. […]
June 15th, 2008 at 8:39 am
Sega may have backed Xbox previously, but if you actually checked the lineup now, they’re actually giving much more support to the PS3 and Wii. A Sega faithful owning an Xbox360 for Sega games? I don’t think so. And yeah, stop spreading nonsense.
June 15th, 2008 at 9:21 pm
[…] [source] (No Ratings Yet) Loading … Tags: Microsoft, rumor, Sega, speculation […]
June 15th, 2008 at 9:40 pm
[…] Official source: http://www.xbox360wire.co.uk/2008/06/13/microsoft-poised-to-buy-sega/ […]
June 15th, 2008 at 10:19 pm
[…] It’s no surprise that rumours are once again circulating that Microsoft may be about to make a move for SEGA (now SEGA Sammy Corp). It’s certainly not the first time we’ve heard about such a move - the last mention of it being back in early 2004 when it was speculated upon on many industry sites such as The Register and Gamespot. When you think about it, such a move would make perfect sense.Microsoft are expected to make a ’shocking and desperate’ announcement at this years E3 - all we know is that it will be software related and nothing to do with hardware. It’s also no secret that Microsoft has had a very hard time in Japan with the 360 - SEGA might be the very company to help turn that around. [x360Wire] […]
June 17th, 2008 at 10:18 am
[…] Source: XBOX360Wire.co.uk […]
June 17th, 2008 at 3:07 pm
[…] Microsoft preparing to buy Sega - strictly rumour but an announcement is expected at E3. Maybe.More XBox 360 - a $30 price cut and a 60GB HDD replacing the 20GB HDD announcement expected at E3. Again, maybe.Ten Achievement Commandments Commander Tim Cast 092 [75:39m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download Spread the Commander Tim gospel: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages. […]
June 18th, 2008 at 8:31 am
Hi, where did these rumours come from Bleem?
How likely do you think this is to happen?
When will we see signs to this?
I’m new here everyone seems cool, i like the layout of the site, yes i’m sucking up so i get a better answer.
But seriously nice site.
Bye for now, off to go look at somethin ???!@#$
June 18th, 2008 at 11:47 am
Fish sticks?
June 18th, 2008 at 11:47 am
Hello, anyone there?
June 18th, 2008 at 11:48 am
Dam di dum…..
June 18th, 2008 at 11:49 am
Oops dum di dum or whatever.