Sony, Toshiba and Hitachi join around liquid-crystal display business
Sony, Toshiba and Hitachi agreed to divest their liquid-crystal display businesses to a government-backed fund amid mounting competition from South Korean and Taiwanese producers, “Bloomberg” reports.
According to the source the companies will spin off and merge the units to create Japan Display K.K. next year. The government-backed Innovation Network Corp. of Japan will own 70 percent of the venture after a 200 billion yen ($2.6 billion) investment, while Sony, Toshiba and Hitachi will split the remaining 30 percent, they said.
The deal may create the world’s biggest maker of LCDs for mobile phones and cameras as Japanese companies struggle to compete against Korea’s Samsung Electronics Co.