Sony to Buy Stake in ‘Final Fantasy’ Maker

Sony Corp. will pay $124 million for 19% of Square Co., which is reeling from losses because a movie based on its best-selling “Final Fantasy” video game flopped.

Sony Computer Entertainment Inc., the company’s game unit, will pay about $11 a share for 11.2 million new shares, making Sony the second-largest shareholder after Square founder Masafumi Miyamoto, Square said in a statement to the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The price is almost 18% below Tuesday’s last trade.

The purchase might extend Sony’s hold on the “Final Fantasy” franchise, helping it fend off rivals Nintendo Co. and Microsoft Corp. The 10 versions of “Final Fantasy” have racked up 33 million unit sales globally, among the most of any console-based game.

“This is a good buy for Sony,” said Yoshio Inamura of Tokyo-Mitsubishi Asset Management Ltd., which holds shares of Sony and Square. “Having close ties with Square will benefit Sony’s game business in the long run.”