Marvelous Entertainment Sells Subsidiary, Cuts Executive Pay

Japanese publisher and developer Marvelous Entertainment (Harvest Moon, No More Heroes 2's Japanese publisher) says that due to a "severe foreign business climate" in which its retail titles were "heavily discounted", it is reducing its financial outlook for 2010. In addition to the recently-reported sale of its stock in European subsidiary Rising Star Games (of which it owned 50%), Marvelous has revealed that it is selling off its subsidiary Delfi Sound entirely. The latter company deals primarily with sound for Japanese animation. Marvelous is selling the company to Amuse Capital, an investment company dealing primarily in the game and IT arenas, and which previously invested in the AQI suite of companies, including Lost Odyssey maker FeelPlus. Amuse Capital will also absorb Delfi Sound's outstanding debts as part of the deal. As Marvelous adjusts its expectations down for the official yearly forecast coming in March 2010, it’s also announcing additional pay cuts for its executives to make up some of the lost cash. All executives took a cut beginning in March of 2009, but effective immediately, representative directors (whose salaries were previously cut by 20 percent) will now get now see a 77 percent reduction of their 2008 salaries. Corporate directors and board members, previously cut 15%, will now lose 25-43 percent. Other corporate executives will lose 15%-17%, increased from their prior 10 percent cut. Marvelous expects a moderate gain from the sale of these two companies, but not enough to offset mounting losses, as this was clearly a move to cut losses rather than to regain capital. More details should be revealed in the company's full financial report in March.