Sony has just confirmed that now that the Kickstarter goal has been reached they are in fact helping with funding and development of Shenmue 3

[mornelithe]

ReimTime said:
I still have a lot of questions. The kickstarter was just to gauge interest? And they made a deal to help out AFTER the goal was reached?

Given that they announced it at their conference, it's more likely that the deal was setup first, with the catch being getting the kickstarter funding.