April 4^th, 2006 (10:25am) - In addition to the announcement regarding the acquisition of developer Secret Level, SEGA also announced this morning that it has acquired the the multi award-winning development studio, Sports Interactive. Founded in 1994 by Paul and Oliver Collyer and operating from offices in Islington, North London, the brothers are the talented creators behind the hugely successful Football Manager series - which with only two titles from the franchise released so far, has sold in excess of 1.5 million copies and became the second fastest selling PC game of all time in the UK. The acquisition itselfs is said to be worth approx. 52 million doolars.

The deal sees SEGA acquiring a company that has maintained the heritage and experience accumulated through many years of development, Sports Interactive have produced titles that have enjoyed an unparalleled history of commercial and critical success. SEGA will empower the team to continue on their existing development path whilst also expanding their resources for the future.

This new deal continues to highlight SEGA’s emphasis on western development and adds yet more weight to the componay’s own long-term strategic vision. SEGA will continue to support Sports Interactive to develop NHL: Eastside Hockey Manager, Out of the Park Baseball and the Football Manager series, as well as exploring ambitious new ventures.

"Football Manager is an extremely successful brand for SEGA and one of the most significant titles for our European line-up," commented Naoya Tsurumi, CEO: SEGA Europe Ltd. SEGA of America, Inc. "This acquisition illustrates that we are achieving our objectives and have our strategic planning up and running. Although we still have a lot more to do, we feel that this is yet another huge step towards strengthening our standing within the European market."

Miles Jacobson, Managing Director of Sports Interactive adds, "From our first meeting with SEGA, it felt like home - they really understand development and it’s an honour to get to work with the overwhelming pool of talent from both the development and publishing side. The partner was right for the next chapter in Sports Interactive’s history, with more releases from the studio this year than ever before. Myself, Ov, Paul and the SI team are all really excited about the future."

The first titles to be released under the new partnership will be Football Manager 2006 for Xbox 360 and Football Manager Handheld for the PSP, both out for release on April 13th in Europe.