Sony Corporation of America Signs Lease for Tower Space at 11 Madison Avenue

NEW YORK – February 24, 2014 -- Sony Corporation of America has signed a 15-year lease with The Sapir Organization and CIM Group for approximately 525,000 square feet of space at 11 Madison Avenue, the iconic office building overlooking Madison Square Park in Manhattan’s Flatiron District. Sony will occupy the top 10 floors of the building, as well as the rooftop, and will have a dedicated entrance at the corner of Madison Avenue and 25^th Street with the address of 25 Madison Avenue.

The space will serve not only as the U.S. headquarters of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation, but also as the global headquarters of both Sony Music Entertainment and Sony/ATV Music Publishing. New York-based employees of Sony Pictures Entertainment and Sony DADC will also move to 25 Madison Avenue. The Sony Store will occupy the ground-floor retail space on Madison Avenue adjacent to Sony’s dedicated building entrance.

Sony plans to move from its current U.S. headquarters at 550 Madison to its new space in early 2016. STUDIOS architecture will develop the space. Sony sold 550 Madison Avenue in 2013 to a consortium led by The Chetrit Group for approximately $1.1 billion.

“We’re excited to be moving to this magnificent building in one of New York City’s most dynamic and desirable neighborhoods,” said Nicole Seligman, President of Sony Corporation of America. “Our new home will put us right where we belong: among the city’s leading cutting-edge technology and entertainment companies.”

“Sony’s move to 11 Madison is a testament to my father’s vision that the building would become one of New York’s most distinguished and desired office headquarters,” said Alex Sapir, President of The Sapir Organization, which owns 11 Madison with CIM Group. “We are pleased to have Sony join our other long-standing anchor tenant, Credit Suisse, and to have two world-class corporations that have made long-term commitments to the building.”

“Today’s news further confirms our conviction that the Flatiron District is increasingly a highly sought-after community for some of the world’s leading corporations that also features some of New York City’s premier residential towers, restaurants, shops, cultural, and entertainment venues,” said Avi Shemesh, Principal at CIM.

Terms of the lease agreement were not disclosed.

ABOUT SONY CORPORATION OF AMERICA
Sony Corporation of America, located in New York, NY, is the U.S. headquarters of Sony Corporation, based in Tokyo, Japan. Sony's principal U.S. businesses include Sony Electronics Inc., Sony Mobile Communications (USA) Inc., Sony Computer Entertainment America LLC, Sony Network Entertainment International LLC, Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc., Sony Music Entertainment, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, and Sony Online Entertainment LLC. With some 900 million Sony devices in hands and homes worldwide today, a vast array of Sony movies, television shows and music, and the PlayStation Network and the Sony Entertainment Network, Sony creates and delivers more entertainment experiences to more people than anyone else on earth.

ABOUT THE SAPIR ORGANIZATION
The Sapir Organization is a group of privately held companies, owned by Sapir family members. Collectively, this New York-based real estate Organization owns and manages approximately 6 million square feet of prime Manhattan commercial and residential space. Founded by Mr. Tamir Sapir, chairman, the Organization has embarked on residential and multi-use projects under the leadership of Mr. Alex Sapir and Mr. Rotem Rosen through ASRR, LLC. The Organization owns and manages significant architectural landmarks throughout Manhattan, including 11 Madison Avenue, 2 Broadway, Trump Soho Hotel & Condominium, 260 Madison Avenue, 261 Madison Avenue and two residential buildings, 50 Murray Street and 53 Park Place.

ABOUT CIM
CIM Group is a leading real estate and infrastructure investment firm that since 1994 has systematically and successfully invested in dynamic and densely populated communities throughout North America. CIM Group draws on its experienced team of real estate, investment and finance professionals to identify and pursue investment opportunities in three primary strategic categories: repositioning and development projects in established and emerging urban areas; well-positioned operating properties in transitional and established districts; and infrastructure. CIM manages three distinct portfolios, including opportunistic, stabilized and infrastructure funds, each of which are diversified by geography and type of property within that risk profile. Headquartered in Los Angeles, CIM maintains regional offices in New York, the San Francisco Bay Area and Bethesda, Maryland. For more information, please visit www.cimgroup.com