Lenovo targets German market with bid for Medion

FRANKFURT,  Germany  – Chinese computer maker Lenovo said Wednesday that it would buy the electronics group Medion of Germany to double Lenovo’s share of Europe’s biggest personal computer market.

A Lenovo statement said the company would offer 13 euros ($18.75) for each Medion share, a premium of 29 percent over the average closing price for the previous month.

If successful, Lenovo would become the third biggest computer company in Germany, with a market share of more than 14 percent.

It would also cover about 7.5 percent of the entire western European market, the statement said.

Medion founder and chief executive Gerd Brachmann has also agreed to a deal under which he is to sell his 40 percent stake to Lenovo at the same price but with 80 percent paid in cash and 20 percent in Lenovo shares.

In January, Lenovo and the Japanese electronics company NEC Corp. unveiled a joint venture that will allow Lenovo to make in-roads into the Japanese market and position both firms to challenge US rival Hewlett-Packard.