Namco Makes A Play For Sega

In a prepared statement to the press, Namco admitted that it has offered to resume merger talks, which started last but were halted once Sega and Sammy decided to merge. Namco said it wants to reopen merger talks, betting that Sega's investors would prefer a Sega-Namco merger. Since the announcement of the Sega-Sammy merger, investors have driven Sega and Sammy shares down, indicating a lack of confidence in the idea. Sega and Namco have had an alliance between their arcade businesses that dates back to September 2001. Namco feels that a complete merger would make sense, allowing the companies to combine their development and distribution operations. "We are certain that consolidation of the two companies' operations in every business field would bring about maximum synergy effects," Namco's statement said. Namco also offered to sacrifice itself in the process, too: it suggested that if a merger were to occur, Sega should be the surviving organization. Sega officials say they are considering the proposal. The news bolstered both companies' stocks on the Tokyo exchange. Namco was up 1.3 percent, and Sega climbed 16 percent.