Bose plays to the philanthropy tune

Indian-American billionaire Amar Bose,founder of the iconic Bose Corporation,has given his alma mater Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) a majority of the stock of his audio equipment company,a gift that fulfills his “long-held desire” to support education at the institute.

Bose Corp will continue to remain a private and independent company and MIT cannot sell its Bose shares. “Dr Amar Bose has given to MIT (where he also taught) the majority of the stock of Bose Corporation in the form of non-voting shares,” the institute said in a statement here.

In a letter to Bose Corp employees,the company’s founder said the gift represents his long-held desire to support MIT education,and reaffirmed the company’s mission to play for the long run. “We will continue to remain true to the principles upon which our company was founded,” Bose,81,wrote to his employees. MIT will receive annual cash dividends on those shares when dividends are paid by Bose Corporation.

Under the terms of the gift,MIT cannot sell its Bose shares and will not participate in the management or governance of the company.