Sony Selling Chip Facility to Toshiba

In a move rendered ironic by Toshiba's coup de grace on its HD DVD format, Sony has agreed to sell Toshiba a Japanese chip-making facility for $835 million.

Sometimes the timing of corporate announcements can make you blink. Immediately in the wake of Toshiba killing off its HD DVD high-definition disc format, the company has finalized a deal with Sony that will have it acquiring a chip-making facility in western Japan for some ¥90 billion (about $835 million). The move is part of Sony’s effort to focus on its core businesses, which the company now believes does not include manufacturing its own microprocessors and custom chips.

Toshiba and Sony have recently formed a joint partnership (60 percent owned by Toshiba) to handle chip manufacturing. The deal has Toshiba taking over two fabrication facilities—one in Nagasaki and the other in Oita—which, ironically, make the Cell processor used in Sony’s Blu-ray equipped PlayStation 3 game console. The plant also makes the RDX graphics controller used in the PS3. The plants also manufacture chips used in a variety of Toshiba products.