Sega chief operating officer Shuji Utsumi has said that the company isn’t interested in any acquisition talks right now after it emerged that Microsoft had considered purchasing it a couple of years ago. Microsoft had a lengthy shopping list of companies that it wanted to acquire, which also included Bungie and Square Enix.
Sega says it has a good relationship with Microsoft
When Bloomberg asked Utsumi if Microsoft had made a formal offer of acquisition to Sega, he understandably declined to comment. Nevertheless, Sega Sammy’s shares rose to their highest since 2007 following this week’s revelation.
“No, not now,” Utsumi said when asked if Sega was interested in acquisition talks. However, he did say that the company enjoys a good relationship with Microsoft. “We are very close with Microsoft and have a great relationship with its management team,” he said. “Microsoft particularly has a high regard for us. Xbox’s Phil Spencer and Sarah Bond are really serious about values that video game fans emphasize.”
Sega has indeed strengthened its ties with Microsoft as evidenced by games like Persona and Yakuza landing on Xbox Game Pass. Both companies announced a strategic alliance in 2021 but made it clear that the alliance did not revolve around exclusive games.
