Samsung has already revealed a while back that it will acquire Harman International. Now, the Galaxy-maker has announced that the acquisition has finally reached its completion. With an $8 billion cash deal, the automotive and consumer electronics company is now owned by Samsung. Former stockholders of Harman will be receiving $112 per share.
Nevertheless, the acquisition won't merge the two companies as a whole. Harman will be a standalone company with its own board of directors. It will have Samsung Electronics President / CSO Young Sohn as its chairman and retain all of Harman's workforce and facilities. This includes Dinesh Paliwal who will be keeping his role as the company's CEO. Harman's brands will likewise move forward as usual, including the audio brand Harman/Kardon that has been used in a number of PCs, tablets, and smartphones.
Samsung did share that its main interest in Harman is the latter's automotive business, which provides Harman majority of its revenue. Nevertheless, it's also safe to assume that Samsung can likewise find a good use for the acquired company's audio technology. Android Authority said that there's a good chance that Harman's audio tech could also reach Samsung's smartphones at some point.
Both Samsung and Harman have shared their optimisms about the acquisition. Samsung's Sohn said that the company sees "transformative opportunities" in automotive, mobile and home industries. Harman's Paliwal, on the other hand, said that they are likewise excited that the transaction has finally completed. The executive expressed his joy regarding the "compelling cash value" for the stockholders, the new opportunities for Harman's employees and the undeniable benefits for its customers.
Now that the acquisition has been completed, Harman's common stock will stop trading until the March 13 market-open. It would also be removed from the New York Stock Exchange. For those who are unaware of Harman's background, this company engineers and designs connected products for automakers, enterprises, and consumers. As per Business Wire, more than 25 million autos of today have Harman's audio and connected car systems. The company then has a workforce of around 30,000 people worldwide.
