Toshiba’s vision of the digital, mobile, networked society The emergence of Korean, Taiwanese, and Chinese companies Q: The spread of broadband and wireless communica- tions is spurring digital convergence. What prod- ucts and services will this allow Toshiba to offer? Q: Recently there has been a conspicuous emergence of Korean, Taiwanese, and Chinese companies, par- ticularly in semiconductors and LCDs. What strate- gies will Toshiba implement to compete with these companies? A: Toshiba remains committed to leading the industry in creat- ing new-concept products and in innovative products that inte- grate digital and mobile communications technologies. I have already mentioned the new development centers at Ome. They bring together about 3,000 development and design engineers from our Digital Media Network Company and Mobile Communi- cations Company who used to be located at five locations, with little contact with one another. At Ome, they will be able to work together, allowing people from different fields to share know- how and ideas. I expect this to enhance technology develop- ment, particularly in software. It will certainly support us in de- veloping products that integrate diverse technologies and in developing technologies that anticipate market needs. We ex- pect significant results in this area. A: Our Asian competitors enjoy competitive advantages—out- standing technologies for mass production and the support of low-cost, capable labor forces—that pose severe challenges to Toshiba. That said, we are moving ahead with strategies focused on utilizing the technology and production technologies of very aggressive Asian companies to preserve our international com- petitiveness. We also recognize the growing importance of benchmarking the outstanding aspects of these companies. However, I believe that we maintain superiority over these com- petitors in product creation, including applications and software. Take our Semiconductor Company. It has a wide range of know- how, from world-leading discrete products to SoC, and it can enhance this by working with our in-house set makers, our PC and TV businesses, for example. This gives us a chance to pro- vide a knowledge edge in supporting other customers. In addi- tion, we will strengthen our close, long-term ties with leading domestic and overseas companies. I am confident that we have the technological capabilities needed to respond to the demands of our customers in a timely manner. 11