Bain/D&M Deal Doesn’t End Rumors

Last week, the ongoing D&M Holdings saga seemed to end.

Best Buy, JVC and Kenwood, which were all breathlessly mentioned as possible suitors by anonymous sources in the usually reliable Japanese media, didn’t snatch up D&M after all.

What a surprise.

Bain Capital, a company that also has ownership interests in more than 300 companies worldwide, including Burger King, Dunkin’ Brands, AMC Theaters, Toys “R” Us and Warner Music Group, has put up around $442.9 million to make the deal and take D&M private.

Like some in the media who continued to report on the dregs of the Blu-ray/HD DVD format war long after the shooting stopped, Bain’s move didn’t stop the Japanese rumor mill.

Yesterday, Kenwood denied reports from the Japanese media that it will invest $9.3 million in D&M once the deal is final. Today, Bain clearly said Kenwood is not an investor in the transaction and there are no plans or discussions being held to get the other CE maker involved.

To paraphrase an old baseball expression, in this case, “You can’t keep your rumors straight without a scorecard.”

And P.S. — Expect more rumors from anonymous sources in coming weeks about which D&M brands might be sold or closed.