From AFX News Limited

AMSTERDAM -- Royal Philips Electronics NV said it has agreed to sell the manufacturing operations of its Philips Automotive Playback Modules (APM) business to Lite-On IT Corp of Taiwan for an undisclosed amount.

The transaction is expected to close in March 2007, subject to customary regulatory approvals and conditions.

According to Philips, APM develops, manufactures and supplies CD and DVD playback modules to producers of vehicle entertainment systems.

The APM operations are considered a non-core activity for Philips, forming part of its Corporate Investments portfolio.

The manufacturing operations that will be sold to Lite-On IT are mainly located in GyÖr, Hungary.

The remaining APM operations -- including research and development, marketing and sales and product management activities-- will be transferred to a joint venture between the two companies, which will operate under the name Philips & Lite-On Digital Solutions, or PLDS. These are primarily located in Wetzlar, Germany.

In PLDS, Lite-On will replace BenQ Corp as partner in a joint venture now operating under the name Philips & BenQ Digital Storage, or PBDS. Upon completion of this transaction, PBDS will be renamed PLDS.

Copyright AFX News Limited 2006. All rights reserved.