SET Renamed Multi-Screen Media; Dressing Up Before A Sale?
By Nikhil Pahwa - Fri 21 Dec 2007 12:21 AM PST
Sony (NYSE: SNE) Entertainment Television (SET) has been renamed Multi Screen Media (MSM), a move which CEO Kunal Dasgupta told IndianTelevison reflects a change in company’s strategy. SET intends to invest in mobile, movies, the Internet and Out Of Home (OOH). The Sony board has approved the change of name, and also booked the domain name multiscreenmedia.com.
I think it’s significant that “Sony” has been dropped from the name of the company - the company is a fairly significant player in the general entertainment channel space, and the branding has been around Sony; in the recent months, however, there has been news of Private Equity interest in SET from firms like Warburg Pincus, Blackstone and Standard Chartered Private Equity. Currently, Sony owns 61 percent in Multi Screen Media, 8 percent is held by Capital International, Japan, and the rest is held by Indian promoters including actor Jackie Shroff, Shemaroo Films MD Raman Maroo, MobiApps Holding’s Jayesh Parekh and World Media group director Sudesh Iyer...It had been rumored that the Indian promoters were looking for an exit. I wonder if the company’s just being dressed up for a sale.
Posted in: Companies, Sony, SET, JV & Investment
