International cable company Liberty Global Inc. on Monday revealed that it reached a deal to sell its stake in a Japanese telecommunications-services provider that hold its 37.8% ownership interest in Jupiter Telecommunications Co., Ltd. for $4 billion in cash.

The transaction will help the company concentrate on consolidation of the European cable-TV industry.

Jupiter Telecommunications is a broadband provider of communications services such as Internet, cable-TV and mobile-phone in Japan. KDDI is the second largest wireless operator in Japan, and through the partnership it is hoped to add 3.3 million subscribers.

"We are clearly shifting our resources toward Europe. After this deal and if Unity is approved, it will be 85% of our business", said Mike Fries, chief executive officer of Liberty Global, referring to a pending purchase of Unity Media GmbH of Germany. "This transaction gives us further liquidity and capital to repurchase our stock and consolidate in our core markets".

The agreement involves a transaction value of about ¥140,000 per J: COM share on Liberty Global's 2.6 million J: COM shares, pointing a nearly 65% premium to J: COM's closing share price on January 22.

The units being sold under the transaction includes those jointly owned by Liberty Global / Sumisho Super Media LP. Prior to closing, Sumitomo's interest in Super Media will be redeemed for the J: COM shares, attributable to it, and Liberty Global will acquire the minority interests in one of the units to be sold.