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SoftBank's ARM cedes control of China unit; Sharp to buy Toshiba's PC business

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SoftBank's ARM cedes control of China unit; Sharp to buy Toshiba's PC business

TOP NEWS

* SoftBank Group Corp. unit ARM Holdings PLC is ceding control of its Chinese business Arm Technology (China) Co. Ltd. to a new joint venture with a group of undisclosed direct investors. As part of the deal, ARM Holdings, through ARM Ltd., will sell its 51% stake in Arm China to the investor group for US$775.2 million. The Shenzhen-registered joint venture, which will be called Arm mini China, has been operating since April and is planning for a public flotation on one of China's stock exchanges.

* Toshiba Corp. will sell 80.1% of its personal computer business to Sharp Corp. for ¥4 billion. Toshiba expects the share purchase agreement to be completed, including all government approvals, by Oct. 1, after which the wholly owned subsidiary Toshiba Client Solutions will be deconsolidated from Toshiba Group. Sharp's acquisition marks its return to the PC business after its exit in 2010.

* China has begun antitrust investigations into three U.S. and South Korean chipmakers on allegations that they have been using their market leadership to boost chip prices, among other unfair practices, the Nikkei Asian Review reports, citing a source familiar with the situation. Regulators are probing Idaho-based Micron Technology Inc. and South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. and SK Hynix Inc., which together control more than 90% of the global dynamic random-access memory, or DRAM, chip market. The three chipmakers could face heavy fines if found to have violated antitrust law.

* ZTE Corp. signed an agreement in principle that would lift a U.S. Commerce Department ban on buying from U.S. suppliers, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

JAPAN

* Sharp will raise up to ¥200 billion by issuing new common shares. The company said it filed a shelf registration statement for the share issuance, which becomes effective June 13. However, it is still considering details such as the timing, total amount and method, with options including a public offering. The company intends to use the proceeds to purchase 100,000 preferential shares each from its main lenders, Mizuho Bank and MUFG Bank, for a total of ¥185.02 billion. The remainder would go toward capital investment as well as research and development.

* The Japanese government is targeting the creation of 20 tech unicorns, or startups with a valuation of more than US$1 billion, by 2023, The Nikkei reports.

* Sony Corp.'s Sony Music Entertainment Inc. will partner with marketing entrepreneur Jonathan Master to launch SamePlate, a new joint venture label focused on cultivating emerging music talent.

SOUTH KOREA

* SK Telecom Co. Ltd. subsidiary SK Planet secured 500 billion South Korean won from investors, including the National Pension Service, the Korea Federation of Community Credit Cooperatives and private equity firms, Kyunghyang Biz reports. The integrated service platform is seeking funding to improve its online marketplace 11STREET.

* The South Korean government ordered local telecom operators to disclose how they set 4G LTE service fees, Yonhap News TV reports. The telcos will be required to share relevant information such as operation costs, income statements and sales statistics with the public next month.

* NAVER Corp. will resume its plan to build a data center in Yongin City, Yonhap News Agency reports. The company's plan was temporarily halted due to a legal battle with the previous owner of the land. The company aims to open the new data center by 2022.

CHINA, HONG KONG AND TAIWAN

* Ant Financial Services Group, an affiliate of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., is shifting its primary focus to technology services from payments and consumer finance, partly driven by growing regulatory pressure on the company's core financial businesses, Reuters reports, citing four sources with knowledge of the matter.

* YY Inc. became the biggest shareholder of BIGO Technology Pte. Ltd. after investing another US$272 million in the series D preferred shares of the Singaporean video-based social media platform. YY also obtained a right, exercisable after the first anniversary of the closing date, to purchase additional shares at the then fair market price to exceed 50.1% of the voting power in Bigo.

* Kuaishou, a video streaming site backed by Tencent Holdings Ltd., confirmed that it has acquired its rival AcFun, without disclosing financial details, Caijing reports. Kuaishou said AcFun will retain its operational independence and maintain its branding, with Kuaishou to provide capital and tech support.

* Tencent Music Entertainment Group reached a three-year strategic partnership with Zhejiang Radio and Television Group on intellectual property collaboration, production and marketing, according to China Internet Information Center.

INDIA AND SOUTH ASIA

* Bharti Airtel Ltd. launched Airtel Home, a digital quad-play platform that allows customers to bundle multiple Airtel services such as home broadband, postpaid mobile and digital TV into a single account.

* Reliance Jio is joining forces with Mumbai-based film and media arts institute Whistling Woods International to set up a lab dedicated to virtual reality and augmented reality, Mint reports.

* Jayanta Pani will step down as CFO of GTPL Hathway Ltd., effective June 30.

SOUTHEAST ASIA

* Malaysian tycoon T. Ananda Krishnan is considering making Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd. private after shares of the pay TV operator dropped to a record low, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg News. Krishnan, who owns a 40.9% stake in Astro, is reportedly speaking to potential advisers about financing options and is reaching out to major investors to gauge their interest.

* MyRepublic Ltd. said it secured a US$60 million investment from CLSA Capital Partners and Kamet Capital Partners. The Singapore-based broadband operator plans to use the funds to accelerate the development of its TelcoTech platform and prepare for a Hong Kong IPO.

* GrabTaxi Holdings Pte. Ltd. launched Grab Ventures, an innovation arm that aims to develop tech startups in sectors such as transportation, logistics and food.

* XL Axiata is in the process of transferring its e-money business to affiliate Axiata Digital Service, in a bid to focus on its core business of telecommunications services, Bisnis.com reports.

* Thai pay TV operator TrueVisions revealed that it paid FIFA 1.14 billion baht to become an official broadcaster of the 2018 World Cup, Thairath reports.

* StarHub Ltd.'s TV customers may not be able to access the 2018 FIFA World Cup via the RTM TV 1 channel, Channel News Asia reports. The Singaporean operator explained that while Radio Televisyen Malaysia, or RTM, is normally accessible to subscribers, RTM may receive directions from FIFA to encrypt its satellite signal so that only Malaysia-based viewers can access the matches on the channel.

* GMM Grammy PCL's GMM One channel agreed to censor inappropriate content after receiving a warning from Thailand's National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission for "rude" words in its "Bangrak Soi 9" drama, Bangkok Post reports.

* Singtel said its corporate venture arm Singtel Innov8 launched the 2018 Innov8 Connect program that aims to look for startups focused on the internet of things.

AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND

* NZME Ltd. and Stuff Ltd. have begun their new appeal against the May 2017 decision of New Zealand's Commerce Commission to reject their proposed merger, arguing that the regulator overstepped its authority when it blocked the deal, the New Zealand Herald reports.

* Stan expanded its licensing agreement with Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. The deal will bring a slate of upcoming Starz (US) original series and hundreds of hours of additional Lions Gate and Starz premium programming to the Australian streaming service.

FEATURED NEWS

As federal internet of things legislation proves elusive, US states push ahead: With more connected devices appearing every day in our homes, cars and offices, U.S. federal and state legislators are grappling with how to regulate the rapidly evolving internet of things for safety, security and privacy concerns.

FEATURED RESEARCH

Consumer Insights: European consumers embrace smart speaker/home hub devices: Survey results reveal that Google Home is the most popular smart speaker in the majority of countries surveyed, with 14% of internet households in Italy and 11% in Poland owning the device at the high end.

Joji Sakurai, Nicole Shiwon Kim, Emily Lai, Wil Hathaway and Ed Eduard contributed to this report. The Daily Dose has an editorial deadline of 7 a.m. Hong Kong time. Some external links may require a subscription. Links are current as of publication time, and we are not responsible if those links are unavailable later.