Electronic components supplier Lite-On Technology Corp (光寶科技) yesterday said that its board of directors has approved the sale of its solid state drives (SSD) business to Toshiba Memory Holdings Corp for US$165 million.
Toshiba Memory, which is 40 percent owned by Toshiba Corp, is the world’s second-largest supplier of NAND flash memory chips.
SSD is a storage device used in consumer electronics, and enterprise and industrial equipment that is based on semiconductor NAND flash memory that Toshiba developed in 1987.
The transaction includes the operations and assets of Lite-On’s storage unit, with equipment, workers, intellectual property, technology, client and supplier relationships and inventories, Lite-On said.
The transfer needs to be approved and is estimated to be completed by April next year, Lite-On said.
The deal would not have a material effect on its finances and operations, the company said.
Nobuo Hayasaka, acting president and chief executive officer of Toshiba Memory, said in a statement that the acquisition of Lite-On’s SSD business positions it to meet projected growth in demand for SSDs in PCs and data centers, amid increased cloud services.
The Japanese multinational computer manufacturer’s move to acquire Lite-On’s SSD business would expand its sales channels and make use of Lite-On’s partnerships with US PC manufacturers such as Dell Inc, Business Korea reported two weeks ago.
Earlier, the Japan Times reported that Toshiba Memory was to postpone its initial public offering from next month until early next year, as the company’s earnings have been dragged by low demand for NAND flash memory chips amid the US-China trade dispute.
The company’s earnings were also affected by a power cut at its plant in central Japan in June, which resulted in a partial suspension for nearly a week.
PATENTS: MediaTek Inc said it would not comment on ongoing legal cases, but does not expect the legal action by Huawei to affect its business operations Smartphone integrated chips designer MediaTek Inc (聯發科) on Friday said that a lawsuit filed by Chinese smartphone brand Huawei Technologies Co (華為) over alleged patent infringements would have little impact on its operations. In an announcement posted on the Taiwan Stock Exchange, MediaTek said that it would not comment on an ongoing legal case. However, the company said that Huawei’s legal action would have little impact on its operations. MediaTek’s statement came after China-based PRIP Research said on Thursday that Huawei filed a lawsuit with a Chinese district court claiming that MediaTek infringed on its patents. The infringement mentioned in the lawsuit likely involved
Taipei is today suspending work, classes and its US$2.4 trillion stock market as Typhoon Gaemi approaches Taiwan with strong winds and heavy rain. The nation is not conducting securities, currency or fixed income trading, statements from its stock and currency exchanges said. Authorities had yesterday issued a warning that the storm could affect people on land and canceled some ship crossings and domestic flights. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) expects its local chipmaking fabs to maintain normal production, the company said in an e-mailed statement. The main chipmaker for Apple Inc and Nvidia Corp said it has activated routine typhoon alert
GROWTH: TSMC increased its projected revenue growth for this year to more than 25 percent, citing stronger-than-expected demand for AI devices and smartphones The Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER, 台灣經濟研究院) yesterday raised its forecast for Taiwan’s GDP growth this year from 3.29 percent to 3.85 percent, as exports and private investment recovered faster than it predicted three months ago. The Taipei-based think tank also expects that Taiwan would see a 8.19 percent increase in exports this year, better than the 7.55 percent it projected in April, as US technology giants spent more money on artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure and development. “There will be more AI servers going forward, but it remains to be seen if the momentum would extend to personal computers, smartphones and
Catastrophic computer outages caused by a software update from one company have once again exposed the dangers of global technological dependence on a handful of players, experts said on Friday. A flawed update sent out by the little-known security firm CrowdStrike Holdings Inc brought airlines, TV stations and myriad other aspects of daily life to a standstill. The outages affected companies or individuals that use CrowdStrike on the Microsoft Inc’s Windows platform. When they applied the update, the incompatible software crashed computers into a frozen state known as the “blue screen of death.” “Today CrowdStrike has become a household name, but not in