History

November 1964

Hibino Electro Sound Inc. was established at 2-7-5 Asakusabashi, Taito-ku, Tokyo with a capital of ¥800 thousand by incorporating Hibino Electric, a formerly sole proprietorship founded in June 1956. Started design, sales and repair of professional audio equipment.
April 1971

Started operation business of lending, installing, and operating audio equipment for concerts.
September 1976

Moved headquarters to 4-6-8 Asakusabashi, Taito-ku, Tokyo.
July 1983

Opened Osaka Office.
November 1983

Moved headquarters to 5-10-2 Shirokane, Minato-ku, Tokyo.
May 1984

Started full-scale video service business.
April 1985

Started operation business of lending, installing, and operating large video equipment.
November 1987

Started installation business for audio, video and computer systems.
June 1988

Company name changed to Hibino Corporation and headquarters moved to 3-5-14 Konan, Minato-ku, Tokyo.
April 1989

Opened Fukuoka Office.
May 1989

Started system design, sales, and maintenance of permanent video and audio equipment for corporate showrooms and exhibition facilities.
June 1990

Obtained Tokyo Governor's Permit (General 2) No. 83271 for construction business (telecommunications construction business).
October 1991

Opened Sapporo Office.
February 1995

Made a capital participation in Chromatek Inc., a manufacturer of video peripheral equipment, and started development assistance and sales of its products. The company changed its name to Hibino Chromatek Inc. in August 2001.
April 1995

Opened Nagoya Office.
June 2000

Established Hibino.com, Inc. and entered the video and audio distribution service via the internet. Made the company a wholly owned subsidiary in October 2002 and carried out an absorption merger of the company in July 2004.
November 2002

Integrated the business of Hibino Chromatek Inc. and started development, manufacturing and sales of video equipment.
March 2003

Obtained ISO 9001:2000 quality management standard.
February 2006

Listed our stock on the JASDAQ Securities Exchange (currently the Tokyo Stock Exchange Standard Market).
August 2006

Obtained Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Permit (General-18) No. 21843 for general construction business (telecommunications construction business).
September 2006

Made Media Technical Co., Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary. The company changed its name to Hibino Media Technical Corporation in July 2010.
April 2007

Made Item Plus Co., Ltd. a wholly owned subsidiary. Carried out an absorption merger of the company in January 2009.
April 2007

Established Hibino Europe Limited, a local subsidiary (wholly owned subsidiary) in the United Kingdom. Liquidated the company in October 2020.
August 2007

Established Hibino Asia Pacific Limited, a local subsidiary (subsidiary) in Hong Kong.
December 2007

Made Heavy Moon, Inc. a wholly owned subsidiary. The company changed its name to Hibino Intersound Corporation in January 2009.
Mary 2008

Made Studer Japan-Broadcast Ltd. a wholly owned subsidiary. Carried out an absorption merger of the company in October 2019.
April 2010

Established Hibino Asia Pacific (Shanghai) Limited, a subsidiary in Shanghai, China.
October 2010

Made Victor Arcs Co., Ltd. an equity method affiliate. The company changed its name to JVC KENWOOD Arcs Corporation in July 2014.
November 2011

Made Hibino Asia Pacific Limited and Hibino Asia Pacific (Shanghai) Limited wholly owned subsidiaries.
January 2013

Subsidiary Hibino Media Technical Corporation made Broadcast Equipment Service Co., Ltd. a wholly owned subsidiary. Broadcast Equipment Service Co., Ltd. changed its name to Hibino Besco Corporation in April 2014. Carried out an absorption merger of the company in October 2021.
June 2013

Made Eightythree Corporation a wholly owned subsidiary.
July 2013

Made First Engineering Co., Ltd. a wholly owned subsidiary. Started sales of commercial lighting equipment, system design, installation, and maintenance services. The company changed its name to Hibino Lighting Inc. in February 2016.
March 2014

Made Covalent Sales Corporation a wholly owned subsidiary. The company changed its name to Hibino Imagineering Corporation in July 2014.
November 2014

Subsidiary Hibino Media Technical Corporation made Medianix Inc. a wholly owned subsidiary. Hibino Media Technical Corporation carried out an absorption merger of Medianix Corporation in April 2016.
April 2015

Made Nittobo Acoustic Engineering Co., Ltd. a wholly owned subsidiary. The company changed its name to Nihon Onkyo Engineering Co., Ltd. in July 2015.
April 2016

Made ELECTORI CO.,LTD. a wholly owned subsidiary.
December 2016

Made JVC KENWOOD Arcs Corporation, an equity method affiliate, a subsidiary. The company changed its name to Hibino Arcs Corporation in July 2017. The company changed its name to Hibino Spacetech Corporation in October 2020.
May 2017

Established local subsidiaries (wholly owned subsidiaries) Hibino USA, Inc. and H&X Technologies, Inc. in the United States.
January 2018

Subsidiary Nihon Onkyo Engineering Co., Ltd. established a local subsidiary (subsidiary), NOE Asia Pacific Company Limited, in Thailand.
May 2018

Established Hibino Entertainment Corporation.
December 2018

Made TECHNO HOUSE INC. a wholly owned subsidiary.
January 2019

Made South Korean companies Sama Sound Inc., Sama D&I Co., Ltd. and Sama CDS Inc. subsidiaries.
February 2019

Subsidiary Hibino USA, Inc. made TLS PRODUCTIONS, INC. of the United States a subsidiary.
April 2019

Made NIPPON SHEET GLASS ENVIRONMENT AMENITY CO.,LTD a wholly owned subsidiary. The company changed its name to NIPPON ENVIRONMENT AMENITY CO.,LTD. in June 2019.
August 2019

Subsidiary Nihon Onkyo Engineering Co., Ltd. made SANOH CORPORATION a wholly owned subsidiary.
December 2019

Established Hibino Europe B.V., a local subsidiary (wholly owned subsidiary) in the Netherlands.
February 2020

Made Sigma A&V and Rental Corporation a wholly owned subsidiary.
December 2022

Made Cerevo Inc. a subsidiary.
December 2023

Made NGC Corporation a wholly owned subsidiary.

(Note) Names of organizations are as they were at the relevant time.

Brief history of Hibino

1. Establishment – Founded in 1964 as a business selling audio equipment

A period of growing affluence during the Izanagi Economy (the period of economic growth from 1965 to 1970)

There was a sudden increase in demand for Western music as a symbol of affluence. Live performances were rare, and virtually all audio equipment was foreign-made. The business of selling audio equipment emerged from the idea that people wanted to enjoy sounds that were close to live performance.
From its founding, the Company focused on the sale of sound systems for commercial facilities. The business area steadily expanded to include the installation, sales, and construction of professional sound equipment for concert sound (PA), broadcasters, halls and theaters, and the Company grew to become the industry leader.

2. Growth - Entered the concert sound (PA) business in 1971

Major change in Japanese culture triggered by the Osaka World Exposition

The Company was the fastest to respond to the importance of sound equipment at concerts and artists' demands for quality sound and sound equipment when there was a surge in large concerts and other events. The Company established the concert sound business, renting out sound equipment for concerts and providing operators to operate the equipment.
The Company's concert sound systems business expanded with the provision of the sound system for “Hakone Aphrodite,” the first major outdoor concert in Japan, for the World Rock Festival, and for other large venues, such as Budokan and the Tokyo Dome, and the Company grew to become the industry leader.

3. Leap – Full-fledged entry into the image business in 1984

Increased demand for complex productions

The Company introduced the first multi-vision system in Japan for stage use as demand grew for productions that combined sound and images. Attracting large audiences and providing satisfaction were the top priorities in this golden age of events. The Company was an industry pioneer, establishing businesses in the areas of both sound and images.
Full-fledged entry into the image business meant that the Company also expanded into markets other than concerts, such as sports events, including the Olympics, national athletic meets, and motor races, as well as exhibitions and trade shows. Expanding the business with a partial contract structure, from the planning of image systems to consulting operations, the Company grew to become the industry leader.

4. Fourth pillar – Expansion into development, manufacture and sales for image products in 2002

Technological innovation in the new digital age opens up possibilities for expression through images

Full color rendition using LED became possible with the development of blue LED, and there was increased interest in equipment able to render large, high-definition images.
In 2002, the year following the introduction of terrestrial digital broadcasting in Japan, Hibino established a “craftmanship structure” that utilized the know-how it had gained from the event image business. The Company commenced development, manufacture, and sales of image products. The Company developed high-performance LED processors and high-definition LED display systems from its proprietary digital image processing technology and established the brand Chroma LED.
Hibino's technology was highly regarded not only in Japan but also internationally, which led to the Company's entry into the digital signage market.