Sharp has signed binding agreements with Slovakian company, Universal Media Corporation and Turkish sales company company VESTEL to begin alliances respectively on Sharp’s audio visual and white goods businesses in Europe. The LCDTV business, forming part of the audio visual business in Europe, will be change into a brand licensing business by granting a license to UMC’s LCD TV business in Europe.

In addition, Sharp agreed to discuss towards the possible sale of SMPL (Sharp Manufacturing Poland Sp. zo.o.), Sharp’s manufacturing base in Poland for LCDTVs, to UMC.

Regarding audio equipment, UMC will conduct the business in Europe, to market Sharp-branded audio-visual products manufactured by Sharp’s manufacturing base in Malaysia, SOEM (S&O Electronics (Malaysia) Sdn.Bhd.).

The white goods business in Europe will be transferred to Vestel. Vestel will sell Sharp-brand white goods (excluding air conditioners), such as refrigerators and microwave ovens, manufactured by SATL (Sharp Appliances (Thailand) Ltd.), Sharp’s consumer appliance manufacturing base in Thailand, and SSEC (Shanghai Sharp Electronics Co.,Ltd.), Sharp’s consumer appliance manufacturing base in Shanghai, China.

Sharp will also license its brand to Vestel for Vestel-manufactured volume zone home appliances, such as refrigerators, washing machines and kitchen appliances such as dish washers and electric ovens,

Going forward, the terms of the business alliances will be finalized in the third quarter of the fiscal year ending March 2015, and the businesses based on a new value chain expected to commence on January 1, 2015 at the earliest.

Sharp will meanwhile continue to operate and further increase the profitability of its European B2B businesses including the document
business with a focus on digital multi-function-printers and its solution businesses, the business solution business with a focus on information displays, and the energy solution business with a focus on engineering, procurement, construction for large-scale photovoltaic power plants, and electronic devices business.

Revamping its unprofitable European business, which accounts for about 5% of consolidated sales, Sharp will focus on Southeast Asia and other profitable markets. The roughly 3,000 employees handling the TV operations in Europe will be laid off. The Japanese company is expected to post a total of roughly 10 billion yen ($90.7 million) in extraordinary losses from the moves this fiscal year.