Word is that Kodansha and publisher Akita Shoten-- among the top of Japan's second-tier manga pubs and publisher of the popular Weekly Shounen Champion anthology --are partnering up for copyright purposes. Basically, Akita Shoten is handing over some of its copyright affairs to Kodansha, presumably to make use of Kodansha's position at the top of the book-publishing food chain-- both for purposes in its home country and abroad.
The deal will go into affect at the Frankfurt Book Fair next weekend, where Kodansha will handle Akita Shoten's copyrights in addition to their own. But with Kodansha handling Akita Shoten's licensing, might that mean that Del Rey Manga-- or Kodansha itself --could find itself licensing Akita Shoten titles? We'll just have to see how it plays out.
Akita Shoten publishes a wide variety of titles, primarily aimed at teens of both genders. among them are Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas and Saint Seiya: Next Dimension, breast-feeding fantasy manga Seikon no Qwaser (already licensed by TOKYOPOP), Sundome (already licensed by Yen Press), Crows Zero, Shigurui, Linebarrels of Iron, and the Doki Doki Majo Shinpan! manga adaptation, among others.
