Tokyo – Sony completed its
planned purchase of Ericsson’s 50 percent stake in SonyEricsson and turned the
company into a wholly owned subsidiary called Sony Mobile Communications.
Sony, which previously owned 50
percent of the joint venture, will integrate the company and its 8,000
employees with its electronics business “with the aim of accelerating
convergence between Sony’s lineup of network enabled consumer electronics
products, including smart phones, tablets, TVs and PCs,” Sony said.
The purchase,
, was promoted by Sony chairman/CEO/president Howard Stringer
as enabling to “more rapidly and more widely offer consumers smartphones,
laptops, tablets and televisions that seamlessly connect with one another.”
The subsidiary’s headquarters
remains in London, and Bert Nordberg remains president/CEO.
Ericsson’s gain on the transaction
will be around SEK 7.5 billion, (Swedish Krona), or about $1.11 billion at a
conversion rate of SEK 6.76 to the U.S dollar, Sony said The gain will be
reported as other operating income in Ericsson’s first quarter.
