On Monday, Sega Sammy of Japan revealed specifics of its intention to purchase Rovio Entertainment, the Finnish company most known for its Angry Birds library. Reuters said that the transaction would cost a staggering $776 million (706 million euros). The news caused Rovio’s stock to drop by double digits. With the change, the corporation hopes to increase its presence in the gaming sector.
Sega Sammy Holdings Inc. would bid 9.25 euros per share. The price has increased by 19% since last Friday.
According to Reuters, the tender offer bid will begin somewhere around May 8. According to the article, Sega’s long-term objective has been to speed up its progress in this area. “In the rapidly expanding global gaming market, the mobile gaming market has especially high potential,” Haruki Satomi, CEO of Sega Sammy, stated.
The BBC reports that he continues, “I feel blessed to be able to announce such a transaction with Rovio, a company that owns ‘Angry Birds,’ which is beloved worldwide and home to many skilled employees who support the company’s industry leading mobile game development and operating capabilities.
The proposal was accepted by the Rovio Board of Directors. thereby resulting in a friendly agreement. According to Reuters, Rovio CEO Alexandre Pelletier-Normand was cited as saying in a written statement that “combining the strengths of Rovio and Sega presents an incredibly exciting future.”
However, the day before the announcement, Sega’s stock fell 4.2%. Meanwhile, Playtika, a participant in the gaming business, made a buyout offer of 683 million euros to Rovio, the company behind Angry Birds, in January. But subsequently, the discussions were cut short.
According to the BBC, the acquisition would “strengthen its position” in the global gaming market. The first game to receive 1 billion downloads was Angry Birds. In addition to its gaming library, it has two films to its credit. Under the Angry Birds name, there are eight games.
On the other side, in 2004 Sega and Sammy Corp. merged, becoming Sega Sammy. It has produced well-known video games, notably Sonic the Hedgehog.