Withdrawal from commodity DRAMs and strategies to promote the semiconductor business A: We thought long and hard about it. Commodity DRAMs have been a significant business, one in which we led the market in the transition to megabit devices. But it is also characterized by highly volatile price fluctuations, to a point that could even un- dermine the profits of the entire Toshiba Group. Our assess- ment also showed us that it was no longer possible to achieve the profit level we used to enjoy as an industry frontrunner and the first company to release a high-density DRAM. When we added it all up, we concluded that the benefits from continuing in the business were too small to justify the large risks that came with them. So we decided to withdraw. Q: What factors underpinned your December 2001 de- cision to withdraw from commodity DRAMs? 6