A Dubai company has bought out a considerable portion of the electronics giant Sony, the Wall Street Journal reports. Dubai International Capital, owned by the emirate's Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, has announced an a an investment it will only describe as "substantial;" the amount is expected to be five percent or less however, as if it paid any more, DIC would have to declare the money for Japanese tax purposes. In total, therefore, the investment could come to as much as 277 billion yen ($2.6 billion).

Companies in Dubai -- a part of the United Arab Emirates -- have been greatly increasing foreign investments in the past several years, as they expect the region's oil supply to dwindle within the next few decades. Local rulers have also concentrated heavily on tourism, building some of the most luxurious hotels and attractions in the world. What impact the buyout may have on Sony is unknown, but the company has already come under increasingly foreign influence, particularly with the hiring of its first non-Japanese CEO, Howard Stringer. [via The Wall Street Journal]