BTW, instead of buying a company, for years now I've always though Nintendo should do these very simple steps.
Take a few million bucks out of that $6 billion cash horde, hire/relocate some kick ass artists, from that staff set up two or three dev teams with a strong creative managment core.
Then set these ground rules:
1.) No pre-existing Nintendo character can be used in any game.
2.) No "Disney-ish" characters period, even original ones.
3.) Games should be made with an older player in mind, not through boobies or unwarranted violence, but through game design, presentation (music, storytelling), and a more sophisticated artistic style.
Sin & Punishment on the N64 is more along the lines of what I'm thinking about. Wanda & Colossus from the ICO team, Prince of Persia, Half-Life, Final Fantasy ... stuff along those lines.
And then let these developers grow and see what types of games they can come up with. And don't cut funding if their first project doesn't sell as well as the business suits hoped. Cultivate your talent, let them grow and develop an audience.
This is cheaper than buying a third party or merging with some other company. Also, situations like with RE4 ... you really can't force another company to give you their IP exclusively. There's none of that issue if the franchise happens to be your own franchise.
Trying to expand your audience when you're not willing to expand the type of content you offer is kind of like trying to get better grades but refusing to do any more homework. Nintendo wants third-parties to do that work for them, but third parties are saying "hey we have to look after ourselves first and foremost".