Moser Baer to acquire Philips' R&D firm

MUMBAI: Moser Baer India Ltd on Tuesday said it will acquire optical research and development company OM&T BV, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Philips, for an undisclosed price.

The company has entered into a definitive agreement with Philips for the acquisition, Moser Baer informed the Bombay Stock Exchange.

"This acquisition is a milestone for Moser Baer as we implement our strategy to be at the forefront of technology in both the optical and solar photovoltaic (PV) segments," company Executive Director Ratul Puri said.

According to the agreement, all Intellectual Property (IP) created by the Dutch firm would be transferred to Moser Baer. The joint venture will also focus on development of photovoltaic technologies to support the Moser Baer's PV business.

Moser Baer said the acquisition will complement the existing technology research being done in the Moser Baer's Company's R&D centre in India and would help the global number two player in the optical media market to further consolidate its leadership position, the company said.

While OM&T has been instrumental for developing new optical media solutions and technologies creating new markets via global standardisation, its work in Blu-ray and being the only firm outside Japan, which is shipping Blu-ray discs and would jump start Moser Baer's objective of being amongst the first few global manufacturers of the Blu-ray disc.

The agreement would also help Moser Baer to leverage OM&T's best in class mastering and stamper making capabilities.