Sun Aug 30, 2009 9:40 am
Japanese electronic makers NEC, Hitachi and Casio have begun talks about merging their struggling mobile phone operations to cut development costs in a saturated market.
A merger would create Japan's second-largest handset maker by shipments after Sharp and help Hitachi and Casio save money in a shrinking domestic market, while expanding to developing overseas markets such as China.
The consolidation could be limited to handset development operations and not include production, said sources familiar with the deal.
Japanese makers now face increasing competition from Apple's iPhone, together holding less than 10 percent of the global handset share.
Electronics giant Sony is the only Japanese brand with a substantial global presence through a joint venture with Sweden's Ericsson. Last quarter it posted a $398 million loss and reiterated plans to focus on high-end smartphones, such as integration with its PlayStation games console.
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