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Toshiba to buy Panasonic's shares in LCD joint venture
Around seven years after it was originally established, Toshiba has decided it best to stop waiting for Panasonic's input on decisions regarding Toshiba Matsushita Display Technology Company. If all goes to plan, Toshiba -- which currently owns a 60 percent stake in the joint venture -- will buy out Panasonic's 40 percent stake on April 28th. For those unaware, the venture was responsible for developing, manufacturing and selling LCDs and OLEDs, most of which were classified as "small to medium-sized." After the share transfer is finalized, TMD will change its name to Toshiba Mobile Display Company, and according to the jointly-issued release, it'll allow Tosh to "further accelerate decision-making and promote comprehensive restructuring of TMD's business." The consumer takeaway here? "Looking to the future, TMD aims to establish OLEDs as an engine for growth and to enhance its display business in the medium- to long-term." Boom.[Via Wall Street Journal]
LG, Amtran hook up on LCD joint venture to go live in 2009
LG and Amtran, the manufacturer behind Vizio HDTVs, put pen to paper today on a LCD joint venture in China. Amtran will own 49 percent of the new company and set it up on its existing production base in China, with LG holding the other 51 percent. According to Reuters the plant should be up and running early next year pumping out 5 million LCD TVs a year, but that hasn't improved investor reaction, with shares in both companies falling again. As usual, keep an eye out for quality and not just a nameplate, those Insignia / Vizio / LG on the shelf next year could have a lot more in common than you think.
Sony, NXP get official with Moversa joint venture
Chances are, you had forgotten all about Sony and NXP's little initiative to cooperate on a NFC (near-field communications) standard, but the two seem to have finally worked out all the kinks and are ready to move forward. The joint venture, dubbed Moversa, will seek to "drive global adoption of contactless smart card applications in mobile phones," and it's already planning to develop, produce and market a Universal Secure Access Module (U-SAM) that "incorporates both MIFARE and FeliCa operating systems and applications." Essentially, the duo is hoping to accelerate the adoption of integrated contactless support, which would enable users to make payments (among other things) easily via their handset. If you're curious about availability, we're hearing that samples should be shipped out in mid-2008, but commercial deployments aren't scheduled to happen until the end of next year.[Via Yahoo / Reuters]
Sony and Qimonda form joint venture to design DRAM chips
Barely a fortnight after Sony disclaimed reports that it was pondering the sale of its PS3 chip production facilities, the firm has decided to partner up with Qimonda in a 50-50 venture "to design DRAM chips for consumer and graphics applications." The new entity will be dubbed Qreatic Design, will be based in Tokyo and is scheduled to start operating by the end of 2007. Of note, financial terms of the deal weren't released, but Qimonda's chief executive did state that the agreement would "support its future product design and solutions development and would further pave the way for product diversification in non-PC applications." [Warning: read link requires subscription]
Sprint bows out of wireless spectrum joint venture
Sprint sure has been backing out of and sashaying into quite a few deals of late, and the schizophrenic trend is continuing as it opts out of SpectrumCo, one of two joint ventures with cable operators Comcast, Time Warner Cable (parent company of AOL, which owns Engadget), Cox Communications, and Brighthouse (Advance/Newhouse). Reportedly, the firm is still remaining a part of the Sprint/Cable venture (now known as Pivot) as it focuses on "integrating wireline and wireless services offered by the cable partners with itself." We're led to believe that Sprint simply had different plans for investing its capital, but it apparently sees value in hanging in there with the whole Pivot endeavor. Interestingly, when TWC's CEO was questioned over SpectrumCo's possible involvement in the forthcoming wireless auction, he casually proclaimed that "it would be inappropriate for him to make any comment on it one way or the other," but if you'll recall, it most certainly picked up a few licenses the last go 'round.
SK Telecom, EarthLink dump $200 million on Helio
As Amp'd scrambles for life and limb and Palm sees its once tight grip on the market slipping away, Helio is being rewarded with a pair of checks worth $100 million apiece. Reportedly, SK Telecom and EarthLink are set to inject a substantial amount of cash into the MVNO, as it has supposedly burned through the initial $440 million initially put forth. Recent financial results from Helio have been less than encouraging, but obviously someone up the ladder thinks it's wise to forge ahead through treacherous waters. Of course, just about anything can survive with enough funding to back it, but unless things get turned around real quick like, Helio isn't likely breathe new life into the oft neglected MVNO universe.
