BBMF Purchases Japanese Distribution Channels and Atlus Co. Ltd. Increases Equity Investment in BBMF
September 28 2004 - 9:00AM
PR Newswire (US)
BBMF Purchases Japanese Distribution Channels and Atlus Co. Ltd.
Increases Equity Investment in BBMF TOKYO, Sept. 28
/Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- BBMF Corporation (OTC:BBMF) (BULLETIN BOARD:
BBMF) announced today that it has signed two definitive agreements
with Atlus Co. Ltd. (Jasdaq: 7866), a leading manufacturer of
gaming software for platforms such as commercial arcade games and
home gaming consoles. Under a sale and license agreement, BBMF will
purchase Atlus' Japanese mobile distribution business for the
aggregate purchase price of JPY 300,000,000 and has been granted an
exclusive, 10-year worldwide license to use Atlus' game contents,
characters and the Atlus trademark, with the exception of certain
mobile game contents, which license BBMF has received on a
non-exclusive basis. Atlus will receive from BBMF a percent of
revenue earned from game distribution. Under a separate private
placement agreement, Atlus will acquire approximately additional
7.1% of BBMF for an aggregate investment of US$5,600,000, bringing
Atlus' interest in BBMF to approximately 9.4% of BBMF's outstanding
shares. Mr. Han Lian, Co-chairman and CEO of BBMF said, "This is a
landmark transaction for BBMF. It is our first acquisition. This
acquisition provides us direct access to the world's most important
mobile gaming market and an opportunity to leap forward to a new
level of growth. We are the first international mobile game company
that has been able to penetrate the Japanese market and operate as
an established player in the local Japanese market.' Mr. Antony
Yip, Co-chairman and President of BBMF said, "This acquisition
allows for the optimal combination of our cost advantage and a
mature distribution platform in the world's deepest mobile gaming
market.' Mr. Nobuyuki Okude, President & CEO of Atlus, said,
'BBMF has demonstrated its capability as a world class developer of
mobile games. We are very pleased and honored to be able to entrust
our crown jewels and our brand name with BBMF.' Mr. Harano Naoya,
Chairman of Atlus said, 'Since we made our original investment into
BBMF, we have been continuously impressed with the execution
capability of its business strategy and the company's growth. We
are very pleased to have a partner like BBMF.' Under the terms of
the private placement agreement, Atlus will make an investment of
US$5,600,000 for 1,600,000 newly-issued common shares, at a price
of US$3.50 per common share. The shares are subject to a one-year
lock- up period. BBMF intends to use the proceeds from this private
placement for general corporate purposes, including potential
future acquisitions. The shares of common stock have not been
registered under the Securities Act of 1933 and may not be
subsequently offered or sold by the investors in the United States
absent registration or an applicable exemption from the
registration requirements. This press release does not constitute
an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any
security and shall not constitute an offer, solicitation or sale of
any securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer,
solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or
qualification under the securities laws of such jurisdiction. About
BBMF Corporation BBMF Corporation is one of the largest developers
of mobile games in the world with around 200 staff and presence in
Japan, Hong Kong, China, Korea and the US. BBMF games can be found
on its web site, http://www.bbmf.net/ . About Atlus Co Ltd. Atlus
Co., Ltd. is a leading developer of Playstation 2 and mobile games.
They're also the developer of the highly successful brand Megami
Tensei which has sold over 5,000,000 copies. The company operates
mobile game and entertainment services on all 3 carriers in Japan,
namely, NTT Docomo's iMode, KDDI's EZWeb and Vodafone Japan. Atlus
is majority owned by Takara, a leading toy company in Japan which
owns brands including Transformers and Toshinden. More information
about Atlus can be found on its web site, http://www.atlus.co.jp/ .
More information about the Takara group can be found on its web
site, http://www.takaratoys.co.jp/ . This press release contains
forward-looking statements about BBMF's future expectations,
performance, plans, and prospects, as well as assumptions of future
events. The reader is cautioned not to put undue reliance on these
forward-looking statements, as these statements are subject to
numerous factors and uncertainties that could cause BBMF'
Corporation's actual results to differ materially from those
expressed or implied by these statements, including without
limitation, changes in supply and demand within the gaming
industry; business and economic conditions and trends; continued
success in technological advances; possible disruption in
commercial activities caused by political disruption in China or
Japan; reduced customer demand relative to expectations;
competitive factors; and other risk factors listed from time to
time in the company's SEC reports. Actual results may differ
materially from our expectations as the result of these and other
important factors relating to BBMF's business and product
development efforts, which are further described in BBMF's filings
with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These filings can be
obtained from the SEC's website located at http://www.sec.gov/ .
Any forward-looking statements are based on information available
to BBMF on the date of this release, and BBMF assumes no obligation
to update such statements. For more information, please contact:
Anny Lian, Chief Financial Officer, BBMF Corporation Tel:
+81-90-8849-6586 Fax: +81-3-4496-4231 Email: Website:
http://www.bbmf.net http://www.atlus.co.jp
http://www.takaratoys.co.jp DATASOURCE: BBMF Corporation CONTACT:
Anny Lian of BBMF Corporation, +81-90-8849-6586 or fax
+81-3-4496-4231, or
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