"We have decided to bring the entire imaging business under a wholly-owned subsidiary of Agfa-Gevaert NV to be formed latest by the first quarter of 2000," Bayer India executive vice-president Wolfgang Faust said.

Currently, the imaging business is a separate division under Bayer India, which is a 51 per cent subsidiary of German chemical major Bayer AG. Faust, however, refused to give financial implications of the spin off on Bayer India, which is a listed company.

Faust said the company had already sought the approval of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) to set up Agfa-Gevaert India in line with the global restructuring wherein, the entire photographic and electronic imaging business was brought under Agfa-Gevaert NV.

He said the formation of a new company would enable the parent company to leverage on its global brand name `Agfa' and capture a greater share of India's fast growing imaging business sector.

Faust said the parent company would bring in the necessary capital in the range of Rs 8,00,000 to Rs 1 million for setting up the new company.

With newspaper and healthcare sector going hitech, faust said the imaging business was poised for a big jump in India.

He said the graphic business world over and in India had fully developed to necessiate formation of a separate company to leverage on Agfa brand.

The $5 billion Agfa-Gevaert, ranks among the leading imaging companies worldwide and manufactures wide range of photographic and electronic imaging systems, particularly for photographic, graphic and medical imaging processes.

The company is also in the field of non-destructive materials testing, micrography and motion picture for big screen and television programme and has 38 sale subsidiary sales organisations.

Faust said the Agfa brand photo films would continue to be marketed by MCC Imaging Pvt Ltd in India even after the formation of the new company.

Agfa, which launched its photo films in India on Thursday willbe marketed by MCC Imaging Ltd and has set a target of 10 per cent of the domestic market share estimated at 77 million rolls per annum.

MCC already has a marketing tie-up with Canon to market its entire range of cameras and calculators.