Yamaha Corporation announces that its Board of Directors, meeting today, made the decision to consolidate Yamaha’s current six overseas sales subsidiaries, which have business locations in Europe, into Yamaha Music Holding Europe GmbH (hereinafter YMHE, Representative: Masato Oike; Location: Rellingen, Germany; a wholly owned subsidiary of Yamaha Corporation), which is Yamaha’s holding and managing company in Europe. Yamaha’s six sales subsidiaries in Europe will be gradually merged with YMHE by 2010.
As the first step in this process, Yamaha Music Central Europe GmbH (hereinafter, YMCE; Representative: Masaya Furuta; Location: Rellingen, Germany; a wholly owned subsidiary of YMHE)––which is responsible for importing and selling musical instruments and audiovisual (AV) equipment in Germany, the rest of central Europe, and Eastern Europe––will be merged with YMHE, and the name of the merged company will be changed this November to Yamaha Music Europe GmbH (hereinafter, YME (tentative name)).
YMHE was established as the holding company with responsibility for management of Yamaha’s sales subsidiaries in Europe in May 2002. At present, YMHE acts as the holding company for six subsidiaries, including YMCE: namely, Yamaha Music UK (based in Milton Keynes, the United Kingdom), Yamaha Musique France (Croissy-Beaubourg, France), Yamaha Scandinavia (Gothenburg, Sweden), Yamaha Musica Iberica (Madrid, Spain), and Yamaha Musica Italia (Milan, Italy).
This decision to consolidate Yamaha’s sales subsidiaries in Europe was based on the judgment that, more so than the past, Yamaha must think of Europe as one market in conducting its sales activities in view of the accelerated movement toward the integration of European markets and the growth of sales via the Internet as well as the spreading of retailing enterprises across national boundaries. Along with this, Yamaha will also work to increase the management efficiency and competitiveness of its operations and expand its investments in growth domains.
Going forward, YME, which will be formed from the merger of YMHE and YMCE, will act as the core company for promoting the integration of Yamaha’s sales activities in Europe. In implementing the merger, YMHE will be the continuing company and will proceed to absorb the remaining sales subsidiaries. The management control functions of YMHE and the sales functions and branches of YMCE (located in the Benelux countries, Switzerland, Austria, and Poland) will be transferred to YME.
The method for the merger and outlines of the new company to be formed through the merger and the merging companies are as outlined below. Please note that this corporate realignment will not have a material impact on the consolidated financial statements of Yamaha Corporation.
1.Method for the Merger of YMHE and YMCE and Associated Costs
YMHE will be the continuing company in the merger, and YMCE will be dissolved and its activities absorbed in YMHE. The estimated costs of the merger will be approximately €700,000.
2.New Company to Be Formed from the Merger of YMHE and YMCE
| Company name (tentative) | Yamaha Music Europe GmbH (abbreviation YME) |
|---|---|
| Location | Rellingen, Germany |
| Paid-in capital | €70 million (100% invested by Yamaha Corporation) |
| Date of establishment | Scheduled for November 2008 |
| Scheduled management appointments | President: Masato Oike (currently president of YMHE); Director: Motoki Takahashi (Concurrently Director and Executive Officer of Yamaha Corporation; General Manager, Corporate Planning Dept.) |
| Lines of business | Overall management of Yamaha’s sales subsidiaries in Europe; importing and selling of musical instruments, professional audio equipment, and AV equipment in Germany, the rest of central Europe, and Eastern Europe; and operation of music schools in these regions |
| Forecast for sales | €412 million (For the fiscal year ending March 31, 2009.) |
| Forecast for total assets | €193 million (As of March 31, 2009) |
3.Outlines of the Merging Companies
| Company name | Yamaha Music Holding Europe GmbH (YMHE) |
|---|---|
| Location | Rellingen, Germany |
| Paid-in capital | €70.0 million (100% invested by Yamaha Corporation) |
| Date of establishment | 2002 |
| Representative | President, Masato Oike |
| Number of employees | 57 (As of June 30, 2008) |
| Lines of business | Overall management of musical instrument, professional audio equipment, and AV equipment businesses in Europe (Holding company for Yamaha’s European subsidiaries) |
| Forecast for total assets | €177 million (As of March 31, 2009) |
| Company name | Yamaha Music Central Europe GmbH (YMCE) |
|---|---|
| Location | Rellingen, Germany |
| Paid-in capital | €10.452 million (100% invested by Yamaha Corporation) |
| Date of establishment | 1966 |
| Representative | President, Masaya Furuta |
| Number of employees | 265 (As of June 30, 2008) |
| Lines of business | Importing and selling of musical instruments, professional audio equipment, AV equipment as well as operation of music schools in Germany, the rest of central Europe, and Eastern Europe |
| Forecast for total assets | €70 million (As of March 31, 2009) |
4.Schedule for the Merger
a.By October 2008, YMHE and YMCE will sign a merger agreement.
b.In November 2008, YMHE and YMCE will merge.
c.By August 2010, all the other of Yamaha’s European sales subsidiaries will be consolidated into YME.
For further information, please contact
Yamaha Corporation
Corporate Communications Division, Public Relations Group
- TEL. +81-3-5488-6601
- FAX. +81-3-5488-5060
Visit Yamaha's website at
http://www.yamaha.com/
