Regulators allow WD to proceed with Hitachi buyout
updated 09:25 pm EST, Tue March 6, 2012
Deal expected to close this week
Despite reports of proposed buyout of Hitachi. The companies appear to have resolved the lingering issues, enabling the deal to move forward.
The FTC had ordered Western Digital to transfer some of its desktop hard-drive business to competitor Toshiba, including manufacturing assets and intellectual property rights. The Commission required the divestment to avoid giving WD and Seagate increased dominance in the desktop HDD market.
Western Digital and Hitachi expect to formally close the deal on March 8. The buyout is said to be worth billions, however the companies have yet to fully detail specific terms.
