| abstract | - Geneon was originally formed under the name Pioneer LDC in 1981. In July 2003, the company was acquired by Japanese advertising and marketing company firm Dentsu and renamed to Geneon Entertainment, while its North American division, Pioneer Entertainment, was renamed to Geneon USA. On December 3, Geneon USA closed its doors, titles that were in mid-release or licensed but unreleased were left in limbo. Another North American anime distributor, Funimation Entertainment, began negotiating with Geneon USA to acquire some of the company's licensed titles. In July 2008, a formal arrangement was announced and Funimation acquired the rights to "manufacture, sell, and distribute" various Geneon anime and live-action titles. On November 12, 2008, Dentsu announced that it was selling its controling ownership in the company to NBCUniversal's Universal Pictures International Entertainment (UPI), who planned to merge the company with its Universal Pictures Japan division to form a new company. The merger closed on February 1, 2009, with the new company now known Geneon Universal Entertainment Japan. In December of 2013, the company once again changed its name to NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan.
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