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Sony closes Olympus stake sale; China's HUYA to buy stake in MTG's esports unit

S&P Global Market Intelligence provides a wrap-up of Asia-Pacific media and communications deal announcements, completions and updates from Aug. 18 to Aug. Sept. 3.

TOP NEWS

* Sony Corp. completed the sale of its entire 5.03% stake in Olympus Corp. back to the medical equipment maker. The consumer-electronics maker tendered 68,975,800 shares at ¥1,165 per share, for a total consideration of approximately ¥80 billion. Sony said the transaction will not have any material impact on its fiscal full-year results.

* Chinese livestreaming platform HUYA Inc. struck a binding term sheet with Modern Times Group to acquire a minority stake in the latter's esports business Turtle Entertainment GmbH, or ESL, for US$30 million. HUYA and ESL will also form a strategic joint venture to enable the expansion of ESL's offering into China.

* U.K.-based Gravity Media Group Ltd. completed its acquisition of Australian live studio and production services provider Chief Entertainment Pty. Ltd. The transaction, pursuant to which Gravity Media agreed to buy Chief Entertainment from Telstra Corp. Ltd., closed on Aug. 30. Chief Entertainment will maintain its existing name and branding until it is fully integrated with Gravity Media's Australia operations.

TECHNOLOGY

* Accenture PLC completed its acquisition of Australian big data and analytics consultancy Analytics8 LP for an undisclosed amount. Analytics8 is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Accenture.

* Toshiba Memory Holdings Corp. agreed to acquire the solid state drive business of Taiwanese optoelectronics supplier Lite-On Technology Corp. for US$165 million. The deal, subject to customary closing adjustments and regulatory approval, is expected to close during the first half of 2020.

* A potential US$2 billion deal between Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and NetEase Inc. has fallen apart due to differences over valuation, KrASIA reported, citing multiple Chinese news sites. Alibaba was planning to buy NetEase's cross border online shopping platform Kaola and merge it into its own Tmall Global. However, NetEase CEO Ding Lei vetoed the deal as the company was not satisfied with the transaction's price tag.

* HKBN Ltd., through a wholly owned unit, agreed to fully acquire system integrator and IT solutions provider Jardine OneSolution Holdings (CI) Ltd. from JTH (BVI) Ltd. for US$50 million in cash. The acquisition also includes JOS subsidiaries Adura Hong Kong and Adura Cyber Security.

* In other HKBN news, the company completed the integration of its enterprise solutions businesses four months after its acquisition of WTT HK Ltd. Following the integration, WTT has been renamed to HKBN Enterprise Solutions HK Ltd.

* Sony unit Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC agreed to fully acquire Insomniac Games Inc., the developer of PlayStation games "Marvel's Spider-Man" and the "Ratchet & Clank" franchise. Following the completion of the deal, which is subject to regulatory approvals and other closing conditions, Insomniac Games will join the global development operation of Sony Interactive Entertainment Worldwide Studios.

* Shenzhen Goodix Technology Co. Ltd. agreed to acquire NXP Semiconductors NV's voice and audio solutions assets for an undisclosed sum. The transaction includes employees in Europe and Asia, including NXP's engineering team, as well as relevant intellectual properties.

MEDIA

* Dentsu Inc. acquired 100% stake in MuteSix, a U.S.-based direct-to-consumer marketing agency, through its U.K. unit Dentsu Aegis Network Ltd. Under the deal, Dentsu aims to expand its DTC customer base for its global network brand iProspect.com Inc. in the U.S., strengthening service functions for social content.

* French marketing company Publicis Groupe SA purchased New Zealand-based independent customer experience agency Affinity iD Ltd. for an undisclosed amount, StopPress reported. The deal will see the agency relaunching as Digitas Affinity ID.

TELECOMMUNICATIONS

* The Korea Fair Trade Commission conditionally approved the merger of SK Telecom Co. Ltd.'s mobile media platform Oksusu with video service POOQ, which is jointly operated by Munhwa Broadcasting Corp., Seoul Broadcasting System and Korean Broadcasting System, Digital Daily reported. The combination will see the creation of Wavve, an over-the-top service launching in September that is set to compete with global video streaming platforms such as Netflix Inc.

* Uniti Wireless Ltd. agreed to fully acquire LBNCo Pty. Ltd., a builder and wholesale operator of private fiber networks, in a cash-and-stock deal worth A$100 million. LBNCo will continue to be managed by its current senior leadership team after the deal is completed, with CEO Steve Picton joining Uniti Wireless' executive management.

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