Sega has won an auction for Index Corporation, the Japanese firm that owns game developer and publisher Atlus.
Index filed for the Japanese equivalent of bankruptcy procedures (Civil Rehabilitation) in June this year, after accumulating heavy debts.
According to Bloomberg, Sega is thought to have paid in the region of $141 million for Index.
With the acquisition of Index and Atlus, Sega has now taken ownership of several noteworthy IPs including the Megami Tensei series, the Persona franchise and the Etrian Obyssey franchise.
These franchises have sizable European fanbases, and Sega may well be looking to leverage its own European resources to bring future titles from these Atlus franchises and others to the European market.
As part of the acquisition, Sega has started a new subsidiary to take over operations of the company, called Sega Dream Corporation, though it commented that this name is “set to change in the future”.
The deal is due to be completed by November 1st, 2013.