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Takashi Mochizuki
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Nov 8, 2022
Nintendo cuts Switch sales forecast even as chip shortage seen to be easing
The company says it's now front-loading production to maximize delivery in the holiday shopping season, and that production output has been improving since September.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 2, 2022
Sony bumps up profit outlook as weak yen juices sales
A boost in streaming sales from its music publishing business helped fuel the earnings revision, making up for lackluster momentum in its games and image sensor businesses.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 26, 2022
Smartphone storage space is the new turf war for game-makers
Japanese games publisher Gree expects a reckoning over escalating costs and ballooning file sizes as developers pack their games with increasingly intricate graphics and storylines.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 20, 2022
Key iPhone supplier warns smartphone demand will continue to fall
Kyoto-based Murata Manufacturing expects this year's drop in smartphone sales to keep going well into 2023, led by a sharp downturn in China.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 3, 2022
Sony betting big on next VR headset with increased production plan
Mass production of the virtual reality goggles began in September and hasn't yet faced supply chain constraints, sources said.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 29, 2022
Top AI guru is helping retool popular Japanese snacks for Ezaki Glico
Junichi Hasegawa's primary job at the firm is to help find the perfect blend of taste and nutrition through massive data harvesting and machine learning.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Sep 28, 2022
Apple ditches iPhone production increase after demand falters
The electronics maker has reportedly told suppliers to pull back from efforts to increase assembly of the iPhone 14 family by as many as 6 million units in the second half of this year.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 2, 2022
Japan’s 'King of Deals' preps his biggest buy in yen headwinds
Yoshihisa Kainuma of Minebea Mitsumi says his company is keen to buy makers of machine components to beef up its product offerings.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 30, 2022
A startup offers Japan's aging CEOs a worry-free succession plan
Every year, tens of thousands of businesses that help support Japan's deep industrial base close shop, unable to cope when company heads retire or fall ill.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Aug 2, 2022
Video game consoles have been spared inflation in Japan, but for how long?
The weaker yen has triggered price hikes on electronics from iPhones to refrigerators across Japan this year, with one glaring exception: the video game console.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 29, 2022
Sony cuts profit outlook on weaker PlayStation prospects
The Tokyo-based entertainment conglomerate said Friday that it now expects u00a51.11 trillion ($8.3 billion) in operating profit, down from u00a51.16 trillion previously.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 5, 2022
Vital TSMC supplier warns of chip material price hikes into 2023
Showa Denko, which supplies chip fabrication materials to the likes of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and Infineon Technologies AG has been forced to increase prices, the firm says.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 6, 2022
Toshiba’s dissenting director speaks out over activist nominees
The opposition highlights the tensions that exist within Toshiba as the conglomerate considers its future, including whether to sell itself to private equity and go private.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 2, 2022
Toshiba reveals buyout and alliance offers ahead of key shareholder meeting
The conglomerate's nuclear business, which is deemed important to Japan's national security, is seen as a major obstacle to any move to make Toshiba privately owned.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
May 2, 2022
Private equity firms eyeing Toshiba buyout face nuclear dilemma
Toshiba's nuclear business is involved in decommissioning the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, making it hard for the government to accept a transfer of ownership to an overseas firm.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 28, 2022
As sinking yen causes pain for many, SoftBank and game-makers are rare beneficiaries
Game publishers such as Nintendo and Capcom create software in Japan, meaning the bulk of their costs are in yen, while a large portion of their sales come from overseas.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
Apr 14, 2022
Toshiba’s talk of privatization leaves some analysts with doubts
Toshiba is in talks with financial institutions on a buyout plan that would be led by domestic investors.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 8, 2022
Murata to run more plants entirely on renewable energy by March 2023
A third of Murata's u00a5230 billion capital expenditure budget over the next three years will be dedicated to environment-related projects, Murata President Norio Nakajima said.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 25, 2022
Japanese firm that moves world’s chips counts on data explosion
Daifuku Co. is redesigning its ubiquitous overhead conveyors for factories to handle an 'exponential” surge in data usage and global chip demand.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 14, 2022
Toshiba to hold extraordinary meeting in March on new separation plan
The meeting, intended to gain feedback from investors, presents the possibility of a showdown with activist stock holders that may oppose the conglomerate's restructuring proposal.

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