Sega Sammy Holdings

Sega Sammy Holdings Inc. (セガサミーホールディングス株式会社, Sega Samī Hōrudingusu Kabushiki Gaisha, TYO: 6460) is a Japanese holding company formed from the merger of Sega and Sammy in 2004. Both companies are involved in the amusement business (Sega with arcade games, Sammy with pachinko machines), and Sega's fame also comes from their video game franchises and home consoles.

Company history

According to the first Sega Sammy Annual Report, the merger of the two companies happened due to both companies facing difficulties. According to Chairman Hajime Satomi, Sega has been in the red for nearly ten years, and thus lacked a clear financial base. Sammy, on the other hand feared stagnation and overreliance of its highly profitable pachislot and pachinko machine business, and wanted to divesify it's business in new fields, utilizing Sega's broader range of involvement in different entertainment fields. Together, as the Sega Sammy group, the company has since grown and acquired and founded multiple companies.