NEC Corporation (NEC) (NASDAQ: NIPNY) (FTSE: 6701q.l) and Hitachi, Ltd.
(Hitachi) (NYSE: HIT) today signed an agreement to form a joint venture DRAM
company at the end of December 1999 to be called "NEC-Hitachi Memory, Inc." (NEC-
Hitachi Memory). Operations are slated to begin from April 2000.
With its president from NEC and executive vice president from Hitachi, the company
will have an initial paid-in capital of 500 million Yen, that is planned to be increased to 2
billion Yen at the end of March 2000 contributed equally by the two partners. NEC-
Hitachi Memory will be headquartered in central Tokyo and have a development and
trial production center located on the grounds of NEC's Sagamihara plant in western
Tokyo.
Heading the new company as representative directors will be Kenji Tokuyama as
President (currently Vice President and Executive General Manager of NEC's LSI
Memory Operations Unit), and Tokumasa Yasui as Executive Vice President (currently
General Manager for Memory Operations at Hitachi's Semiconductor and Integrated
Circuits group). By April 2000, the new company will have approximately 200
employees and this number is expected to expand to between 600-700 people by April
2001. The staff will come from both NEC and Hitachi.
The new company's first task will be to conduct joint development of NEC and Hitachi's
leading-edge DRAM products. Development will start with the 256Mb and 512Mb
DRAM generations based on 0.13-micron process technology to be ready as product in
fiscal year 2001 (year ending March 31, 2002). The new company will also develop its
sales organization with the aim of integrating sales operations at the joint venture
company by the end of 2000 under a joint brand encompassing existing NEC and Hitachi
DRAM products as well as those developed by the new company.
The main DRAM production centers at NEC and Hitachi, NEC Hiroshima and Hitachi
Nippon Steel Semiconductor Singapore, will integrate their production capabilities to
provide foundry services to the new firm, whilst production capacity at other NEC and
Hitachi fabs will also be made available. Through these measures, NEC-Hitachi Memory,
Inc. will have integrated development, sales and production operations.
NEC and Hitachi initially agreed to broad cooperation in their DRAM businesses and a
tie-up in June 1999. The establishment of a new DRAM joint-venture company based on
today's signing of a contract between the two companies, is expected to be implemented
quickly and form the basis for a new, strengthened presence in the worldwide DRAM
market.
The new firm will bring together the best technology from both NEC and Hitachi that
will not only result in more technically advanced products, but also in more rapid
development. Through the anticipated synergies between the companies, more rapid
introduction of shrink versions and circuit innovations are expected to reduce chip area
size resulting in greater product competitiveness. Moreover, with joint branding, DRAM
products are also expected to achieve greater presence in the marketplace to ensure the
firm takes the leading DRAM market share.
Through their new joint venture company, NEC and Hitachi are staking their claim to
leadership of the worldwide DRAM market based on the increased competitiveness that
the new company is expected to achieve through its products, technology and services.
About NEC Corporation
NEC Corporation (NASDAQ: NIPNY) (FTSE: 6701q.l) pioneered the concept of C&C,
the integration of Computers and Communications, and is the only company in the world
to be counted among top ranking corporations spanning the wide range of fields essential
for this vision of multimedia: computers, communications and electron devices.
Employing in excess of 150,000 people around the world, NEC saw net sales in fiscal
year 1998-99 amount to 4,759 billion yen (approx. US$40 billion). For further
information, visit the NEC home page at: http://www.nec-global.com
About Hitachi, Ltd.
Hitachi, Ltd., headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is one of the world's leading global
electronics companies, with fiscal 1998 (ended March 31, 1999) consolidated sales of
7,977 billion yen ($65.9 billion*). The company manufactures and markets a wide range
of products, including computers, semiconductors, consumer products and power and
industrial equipment. For more information on Hitachi, Ltd., please visit Hitachi's Web
site at http://www.hitachi.co.jp
*At an exchange rate of 121 yen to the dollar
For further details, please contact:
Hitachi, Ltd. NEC Corporation
Yukiaki Ina Aston Bridgman
Public Relations, Corporate Communications Public Relations Division
Tel: 81-(0)3-3258-2055 Tel: 81-(0)3-3798-6511
E-mail: yina@cm.head.hitachi.co.jp E-mail: Aston_Bridgman@HO-PRD.ccgw.nec.co.jp
Outline of NEC-Hitachi Memory, Inc.
Head office: Tokyo, Japan
Capital: 500 million Yen
(NEC 50%, Hitachi 50%, by end December, 1999)
2 billion Yen
(NEC50%, Hitachi 50%, by end March, 2000)
President: Kenji Tokuyama (currently Executive VP and General Manager,
LSI Memory Operations Unit, NEC Corporation)
Executive
Vice President: Tokumasa Yasui (currently General Manager for Memory
Operations, Semiconductor and Integrated Circuits, Hitachi, Ltd.)
Employees: Approx. 200 (as of April, 2000)
600-700 (as of April 2001) |
