Fujifilm Holdings Chairman and CEO Shigetaka Komori insisted that his company is still committed to acquiring Xerox Corp., but acknowledged that the possibility of the transaction being completed was “difficult.”
In an interview with the Nikkei Business Review, Komori said he would be open “to any proposals from Xerox” to settle Fujifilm”™s $1 billion breach of contract lawsuit that was filed after the acquisition deal was unilaterally cancelled by Xerox. But Komori also stated that his company would not aggressively pursue the Norwalk-headquartered Xerox.
“We haven’t given up on acquiring Xerox,” said Komori. “But we will not take the initiative at this point. We are not going to try to persuade Xerox.”
Komori also nixed the suggestion that Fujifilm could offer a new deal to sway Xerox. “We have no intention of sweetening the financial terms of the January acquisition plan,” he said. “A large majority of Fujifilm shareholders object to an additional contribution. We will not consider a new acquisition plan from our side.”
When asked about the current state of relations between the companies, Komori said that Xerox Vice Chairman and CEO John Visentin met with him in Japan last month, commenting that “current relations are good.”
