Sony
Jackson, 50, died yesterday in Los Angeles. An examination begins today to determine the cause of death, the Los Angeles County coroners office said. Tokyo-based Sony had planned before his death to start selling five of the stars CD packages including “Thriller” and “Bad” from July 8 in Japan.
Sony owns the rights for Jacksons “Off the Wall,” “Thriller,” “Bad,” “Dangerous” and “HIStory” albums, the company said in a statement. The singer sold an estimated 750 million records worldwide and was recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the Most Successful Entertainer of All Time, the company said.
“There will likely be a positive impact for Sony in selling products such as memorial editions,” said Kazumasa Kubota, a Tokyo-based analyst at Okasan Securities.
Tower Records Japan Inc. has set up special sections to sell Jacksons products at its stores in Japan, Tatsuro Yagawa, the companys spokesman in Tokyo, said by telephone.
“Michael Jackson was a brilliant troubadour for his generation, a genius whose music reflected the passion and creativity of an era,” Howard Stringer, Sony chief executive officer, said in a statement. “We have been profoundly affected by his originality, creativity and amazing body of work. The entire Sony family extends our deepest condolences to his family and to his millions of fans.”
Ripple Effects
The expected increase in sales of CDs, DVDs and package sets in memory of the singer “will have ripple effects on related companies in Japan, Europe and the U.S.,” Masayuki Ohtani, a researcher at Securities Japan Inc., said in a phone interview.
“Sonys music unit may sell Michael Jackson memorial editions and there will be a certain positive effect to sales at the unit,” Yasuo Nakane, a Deutsche Bank AG analyst in Tokyo, said by phone. “Still, its contribution to Sonys overall earnings will be limited and wont likely impact Sonys share price.”
Sony shares fell 0.6 percent to 2,500 yen as of 2:11 p.m. in Tokyo, while its closest domestic rival, Panasonic Corp., slid 0.8 percent. The benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average gained 0.6 percent.