NEWS

Paul Hastings Advises Yamaha in the Strategic Acquisition of Nexo SA

August 04, 2008

Paris, August 4 2008 Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP advised the Japanese company Yamaha Corporation in the strategic acquisition of the majority stake held by the founders of Nexo SA, a leading French manufacturer and seller of professional acoustic speaker systems listed on Euronext/Marché Libre. The acquisition, which places a valuation on Nexo SA of approximately €55 million, follows Yamahas strategic alliance with Nexo SA forged in 2005 and brings Yamahas ownership stake to 74.9%.

It is anticipated that Yamaha will launch a tender offer to acquire the remaining shares of Nexo SA on the open market in September 2008.

The Paul Hastings team advising Yamaha was led by Joel Simon, assisted by Liubomir Roglev and Michael Benayoun (corporate/M & A), Pierre Kirch (antitrust), Guillaume Boitel (capital markets), Stéphane Henry (employment law), Laurent Drion (intellectual property), and Daniel Rainer, intern.

Paul Hastings previously advised Yamaha in the 2005 strategic alliance with Nexo SA.

Joel Simon, Paul Hastings corporate partner, stated, This transaction is a further validation of the strength of our international footprint, which allows us to represent clients like Yamaha in complex Asian/European M & A transactions. We are very pleased to have been able to assist our good client Yamaha in this important strategic acquisition.

Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP, founded in 1951, is a leading international law firm with over 1,200 attorneys in 18 offices. The firm serves a diverse client base including many of the leading global financial institutions and Fortune 500 companies and offers deep capabilities in capital markets, finance and restructuring, intellectual property, international arbitration and dispute resolution, investment management, labor and employment, mergers and acquisitions, private equity, product liability, project finance, real estate, securities litigation and tax advisory services. For additional information, please visit our website at www.paulhastings.com.