After signing a nonbinding agreement in January to spin off its TV business, today Sony officially announced that TCL will pay approximately 75.4 billion yen (over $473 million) for a 51 percent stake in a new joint venture called Bravia Inc., with Sony holding the remaining 49 percent.
The new wholly owned subsidiary will assume Sony’s home entertainment business that covers the research and development, design, manufacturing, and support for various devices. These include Bravia televisions, other flat panel displays, projectors, home audio gear, and home theater systems.
Bravia Inc., which will be headquartered in Sony’s Osaki office in Tokyo, is expected to begin operations in April 2027. It will produce TVs with both Sony and Bravia branding but will leverage TCL’s advanced display technology, manufacturing footprint, global scale, and vertically integrated supply-chain capabilities to potentially deliver Bravia products at a lower price.
In today’s announcement, Sony Senior Vice President Kenji Tanaka says that through the strategic partnership Bravia Inc. will “strive to provide new customer value to a global audience and achieve further growth in the home entertainment field.” As part of the deal, TCL will also purchase Sony EMCS (Malaysia) Sdn., a subsidiary responsible for manufacturing Sony’s home entertainment products. Negotiations for another Sony manufacturing subsidiary, Shanghai Suoguang Visual Products Co., Ltd., are ongoing.
