Kyocera To Acquire LCD Facility From Sony

LONDON — Kyocera Corp. has agreed to acquire a part of Sony Mobile Display Corp.'s thin-film transistor liquid crystal display design and manufacturing business. The amount Kyocera is spending was not disclosed. Kyocera (Kyoto, Japan) is set to acquire TFT LCD facilities located in Yasu City, Shiga prefecture, Japan, effective June 1, 2010. Existing employment contracts will be assigned to Kyocera and employees transferred on the same date. Kyocera's thin-film components group already develops LCDs smaller than 10.4-inch diagonal for industrial applications, supplying both super-twisted nematic passive displays and active displays. Kyocera said the acquisition of Sony Mobile Display's TFT LCD business is intended to strengthen Kyocera's ability to respond to growing demand. The acquisition will enable Kyocera to expand its TFT LCD line with products of higher added value to meet a wider range of customer needs.