Sony Corporation (SNE) has made a strategic investment of $250 million in Epic Games, the two companies announced Thursday.

What Happened

The Japanese conglomerate will own a 1.4% stake in the company best known as the maker of the cooperative shooter-survival game Fortnite, according to a CNN report.

The two companies said the investment "cements an already close relationship."

"Through our investment, we will explore opportunities for further collaboration with Epic to delight and bring value to consumers and the industry at large, not only in games but also across the rapidly evolving digital entertainment landscape," Sony Corporation Chairman Kenichiro Yoshida said in a statement.

What Else

According to a Bloomberg report, Epic Games was nearing a deal to raise $750 million from T. Rowe Price Group Inc. (TROW) and others last month. The funding round would value the gaming company at $17 billion.

Sony's investment also comes at a time when it is gearing up to launch its next-generation gaming console PlayStation 5 later this year. Epic Games launched the latest version of its game engine for developers, the Unreal Engine 5, in May.

Price Action

Sony shares closed 2.5% higher at $71.53 on Thursday and were up another 0.7% in the after-hours session at $72.01.