CCC to buy HMV Japan
Friday, March 26, 2010
Tokyo-based Culture Convenience Club (CCC), operator of music and video retail/rental chain Tsutaya, is buying HMV Japan.
CCC announced March 25 that it will purchase all the shares in HMV Japan from Daiwa Securities SMBC Principal Investments (DPI) effective June 30. The 44-store chain will continue to operate under the HMV banner.
The deal cements CCC’s status as Japan’s biggest music retailer.
“CCC intends to bolster its corporate value and that of HMV Japan and reinvigorate the music/video software market by combining HMV Japan's business expertise and CCC's 34-million-plus customer base and 1,400-store network,” CCC said in a statement. “CCC places a high value on HMV Japan's customer base, brand power, business know-how and online music-sales operations.”
U.K.-based HMV launched its Japanese subsidiary in 1990, but sold it to DPI in 2007 due to declining CD sales.
