TOKYO, Nov. 4, 2009 (Kyodo News International) --
(Editors: ADDING LAST 4 GRAFS)
JVC Kenwood Holdings Inc. is considering selling its music software group company Victor Entertainment Inc. as part of efforts to rehabilitate its struggling businesses, sources familiar with the matter said Wednesday.
Potential buyers envisaged by the holding company of Victor Co. of Japan, known as JVC, and Kenwood Corp. include major video game software developer Konami Corp. (NYSE:KNM) , the sources said.
Victor Entertainment, a wholly owned subsidiary of JVC, is widely known for the raft of famous bands and artists on its books, such as Southern All Stars and SMAP and ranks fourth in the Japanese music software industry after Universal Music LLC, Avex Group Holdings Inc. and Sony (NYSE:SNE) Music Entertainment (Japan) Inc.
JVC Kenwood, established via management integration between JVC and Kenwood in October 2008, has been suffering from poor earnings as it has taken a blow from the global recession, the sources said.
The holding company is keen to rehabilitate its profitability by limiting the number of business segments into which it will go on funneling its resources, they said.
In 1928, Victor Entertainment started producing records as the music division of the Japanese subsidiary of Victor Talking Machine Co. of the United States. It was spun off from Victor as a record company in 1972.
JVC Kenwood, which posted a group net loss of 18.80 billion yen in fiscal 2008, has been pushing a downsizing program under which it has been shrinking its television business at home and abroad and cutting back on its workforce.
It expects a net loss of 20 billion yen in fiscal 2009.
