Japan Victor
(JVC) and Kenwood agree that a strategic alliance in car
electronics and home/portable audio, as well as the unification
of both companies’ management, would bring opportunities for
success in a challenging AV market.
Shoichiro Eguchi, President, Kenwood USA Corporation
As part of the JVC-Kenwood alliance, JVC will issue a total of
$290 million worth of new shares to Kenwood and Kenwood’s top
shareholder, Sparx Group. Kenwood will pay $167 million for a
17% stake in JVC while Sparx will $125 million worth of shares,
acquiring a 12.8% stake.
Kenwood USA Corporation President Shoichiro Eguchi said, “The
overwhelming trend of digital merchandise is shorter product
development cycles and fiercely aggressive pricing. This trend
has made the consumer electronics market extremely competitive,
however Japan Victor (JVC) and Kenwood agree that a strategic
alliance in car electronics and home/portable audio, as well as
the unification of both companies’ management, would bring
opportunities for success in a challenging AV market.”
In the car electronics business, the total of both companies’
business size currently reaches $1.4 billion.
“A unification of resources offers added value and
competitiveness in the market,” added Eguchi.
Kenwood was founded in 1961 and is one of the three largest
selling brands of audio and video entertainment products in the
United States.
