Western Digital completes asset transfer to Toshiba
updated 10:21 am EDT, Tue May 15, 2012
FTC-imposed WD asset transfer complete, Viviti buy approved
The FTC-imposed transfer of assets by hard drive maker Western Digital (WD) to Toshiba is now completed, the company announced on Tuesday. The move was required by regulatory bodies due to monopoly concerns after WD revealed its intention to purchase Hitachi's Viviti hard drive maker. Previously, Viviti was known as Hitachi Global Storage Technologies.
With the new assets, Toshiba will be capable of building 3.5-inch hard drives for consumers and business-critical applications. If the FTC didn't step in, it believed the deal would be uncompetitive in the industry, resulting in just two global desktop hard drive makers.
WD will also take control of Toshiba Storage Device Thailand that suffered extensive damages during the floods. This includes property, facilities, and employees, which WD plans to integrate into its Thailand operations. Financial details of the deals weren't made public.
