A consortium of Japanese companies, led by Tokyo-based post-production company Imagica Robot Holdings, is set to acquire localization provider SDI Media.

Imagica Robot has entered a deal with the government-backed Cool Japan Fund and trading company  Sumitomo Corporation to buy SDI Media for US$160 million. After the transaction goes through, SDI will become a consolidated subsidiary of Imagica.

Cool Japan Fund is a public-private fund that aims to boost overseas demand for Japanese products and services.

With the investment in SDI, the consortium aims to bump up distribution of Japanese content (television series, animation, films) to overseas markets. Currently, it can be a costly process to localize Japanese content into other languages.

Specializing in dubbing, subtitling and other localization services, SDI Media operates in 37 countries worldwide in more than 80 languages. Through the investment, SDI is expected to open in new markets and expand the distribution of Japanese content worldwide.