The search for a buyer to take over the Fujitsu mobile phone company has come to an end, as the company is in talks with an investment fund group.
Tokyo based investment fund Polaris Capital Group has reportedly agreed on a deal with the Japanese company, according to Nikkei newspaper. The value of the deal is expected to be somewhere between 40bn and 50bn Yen.
Fujitsu will be the latest Japanese electronics maker to exit the field of mobile phone technology, leaving just Sony, Sharp and Kyocera the remaining companies in the Japanese market.
The sale plans arose after Fujitsu faced tough competition from larger rivals in the mobile phone market, such as Apple and Samsung. The company reportedly said it was selling the mobile phone company element of the business to move focus on its core information technology services business, according to the Nikkei.
Currently, Fujitsu drives 70% of its sales from operations such as system development and server sales, so it comes as no surprise the company wants to put more of a focus on this are.
Despite looking to change its focus from the mobile phone market, the company is expected to continue operating its Arrows band under Polaris.
The sale deal will have various conditions, including the promise that the mobile unit’s -staff and factories remain intact, regardless of the move.
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Last year the Lenovo Group agreed to purchase a majority stake in Fujitsu’s personal computer unit for $157m, in order to gain a larger share of the PC market. In total the Japanese company sold 51% of its computer unit back in November. For Fujitsu, the sale took a large portion of the company off its hands in yet another dwindling market.
The size of the deal Polaris Investment Group will make is still under negotiation, but an official agreement is expected to be revealed by the end of the month.
