Toshiba to sell EMI stake for €140m

Japanese electronics giant Toshiba said today it would sell its entire stake in Toshiba-EMI Ltd to its British partner in the music content business venture, EMI Group Plc, for around €140m.

Toshiba expects to complete the transfer of its 45% stake in the joint venture in the first half of the 2007 fiscal year with an estimated transfer price of about €135m, the company says.

The transaction was not expected to have an impact on Toshiba’s business forecast for the current fiscal year, it said.

Toshiba said it had recently received an offer from EMI Group for its entire interest in the venture and decided to sell the stake as the music content business was less relevant to other Toshiba businesses.

The venture dates to 1961, when Capitol Records invested in Toshiba Musical Industries, Toshiba spokesman Keisuke Ohmori said. It was renamed Toshiba-EMI in 1973 and the EMI Group upped its stake to 55% in 1994, he said.