Sony in talks to buy out Ericsson stake

ELECTRONICS GIANT Sony is reported to be talking to Ericsson about buying out its stake in their mobile phone joint venture. The move is designed to help the Japanese group catch up with rivals Apple and Samsung. A rebranding of the mobile unit would have a potentially large knock-on impact on its sponsorships: Sony Ericsson has been a long-standing partner of the WTA but recently downgraded its commitment making way for a joint presenting partner sponsorship from Turkish bank TEB and French bank BNP Paribas . Parent company Sony has long seen sports sponsorship as a key plank in its branding campaign with partnerships with FIFA and elsewhere in football in addition to investments in NASCAR, Baseball, Basketball and Golf. It is conceivable that a Sony branded mobile unit would increase its marketing as it brings new products to market. A decision on the future of the 50:50 joint venture is imminent as the 10-year-old deal is up for renewal and Sony and Telefon AB LM Ericsson have been talking for weeks about the future. Any deal which sees Sony go it alone is likely to be viewed negatively by Ericsson which is struggling to keep pace with rapid changes in the sector.