Square Enix has launched a friendly take-over bid for fellow third party publisher Tecmo. Should the bid be accepted by Tecmo's management and shareholders, Tecmo would, similar to Taito, become a member of the Square Enix group under the umbrella of Square Enix Holdings. Games would still be published under the Tecmo label.

At a press conference held in Tokyo today, Square Enix president Youichi Wada explained, that his company had submitted a take-over bid and was now waiting for Tecmo's board of directors to decide whether or not to accept the proposal until September 4th. While the global game industry has kept growing, Japanese game makers couldn't boast an overwhelming strength, according to Wada. To improve this situation it was necessary for companies to join forces and come up with strategies to deal effectively with this situation. He suggested the proposed take-over would help to further energize Tecmo's broad business portfolio on a global level. Square Enix's management apparently had met with Tecmo president and chairman Yasuhara Kakihara to discuss a potential tie-up already back in May. The Kakihara family still controls 30% of Tecmo's shares.

The recent months have been difficlt for the makers of Dead or Alive and Ninja Gaiden. After a dispute over allegedly unpaid bonus payments, Team Ninja president Tomonobu Itagaki filed a lawsuit against his long-time employer and left the company in June. Last month, Tecmo president Yasuda resigned. Investors did not appreciate all these problems, resulting in Tecmo shares tumbling to a four year low. Square Enix's take-over bid has apparently helped to re-spark investor interest, though, as the share gained 14% during today's trading day in Tokyo.

• Famitsu