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Toshiba

is a multinational high technology electrical and electronics Electronics

The field of electronics comprises the study and use of systems that operate by controlling the flow of ... 

 manufacturing firm, headquartered in Tokyo Tokyo

listen is one of the 47 prefectures [i] of Japan [i] and is the location of its capital [i] ... 

, Japan Japan

is an island country [i] in East Asia [i]. ... 

. It is the 7th largest integrated manufacturer of electric and electronic equipment in the world. As a chip maker, Toshiba Semiconductors is among the Worldwide Top 20 Semiconductor Sales Leaders.

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is a multinational high technology electrical and electronics Electronics

The field of electronics comprises the study and use of systems that operate by controlling the flow of ... 

 manufacturing firm, headquartered in Tokyo Tokyo

listen is one of the 47 prefectures [i] of Japan [i] and is the location of its capital [i] ... 

, Japan Japan

is an island country [i] in East Asia [i]. ... 

. It is the 7th largest integrated manufacturer of electric and electronic equipment in the world.

As a chip maker, Toshiba Semiconductors is among the Worldwide Top 20 Semiconductor Sales Leaders.

History

Toshiba was founded by the merging of two companies in 1939.

The first company, Tanaka Seizosho , was Japan's first manufacturer of telegraph equipment and was established by Hisashige Tanaka Hisashige Tanaka

Hisashige Tanaka lived during the Edo period [i] of Japan's history [i]. ... 

 in 1875. In 1904, the company name was changed to Shibaura Seisakusho . Through the first part of the 20th century 20th century

The 20th century started on 1 January [i] 1901 [i] and ended on 31 December [i] 2000 [i], according to t... 

, Shibaura Engineering Works became a major manufacturer of heavy electrical machinery as Japan, modernized during the Meiji Era, became a world industrial power.

The second company, originally named Hakunetsusha, was established in 1890 and was Japan's first producer of incandescent electrical lamps. The company diversified into the manufacture of other consumer products, and in 1899 it was renamed Tokyo Denki .

The merger in 1939 of Shibaura Seisakusho and Tokyo Denki created a new company called Tokyo Shibaura Denki. It was soon nicknamed Toshiba, but it wasn't until 1984 that the company was officially renamed Toshiba Corporation.

The group expanded strongly, both by internal growth and by acquisitions, buying heavy engineering and primary industry firms in the 1940s 1940s

... 

 and 1950s 1950s

The 1950s was the decade spanning the years 1950 to 1959.... 

 and then spinning off subsidiaries in the 1970s 1970s

The 1970s decade [i] refers to the years from 1970 [i] to 1979 [i], inclusive. ... 

 and beyond, groups created include Toshiba EMI , Toshiba Electrical Equipment , Toshiba Chemical , Toshiba Lighting and Technology , Toshiba America Information Systems  and Toshiba Carrier Corporation .

The company was responsible for a number of Japanese firsts, including radar , the TAC digital computer , transistor television and microwave oven , color video phone Videophone

A videophone is a telephone [i] which is capable of both audio [i] and video [i] duplex transmission [i] ... 

 , Japanese word processor , MRI system , laptop personal computer , NAND EEPROM , DVD , the Libretto Libretto

A libretto is the complete study of words used in an extended musical [i] work such as an opera [i], operetta [i]... 

 sub-notebook personal computer , and HD-DVD .

In 1987, the company was accused of illegally selling CNC CNC

The abbreviation CNC stands for Computer Numerical Control, and refers specifically to a computer ... 

 milling machines Milling machine

A milling machine is a power-driven machine used for the complex shaping of metal [i] parts. ... 

 used to produce very quiet submarine Submarine

A submarine is a specialized watercraft [i] that can operate underwater [i].... 

 propellers to the Soviet Union Soviet Union

The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , more commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a Communist state [i] ... 

 in violation of the CoCom agreement. The incident put a strain on relations between the United States United States

The United States of America, also known as the United States, the U.S., the U.S.A., a... 

 and Japan Japan

is an island country [i] in East Asia [i]. ... 

 and resulted in the arrest and prosecution of two senior executives, as well as the imposition of sanctions on the company by both countries.

In 2001, Toshiba signed a contract with Orion Electric, one of the world's largest OEM consumer video electronic makers and suppliers, to manufacture and supply finished consumer TV and video products for Toshiba to meet the increasing demand for the North American market.

In December 2004, Toshiba quietly announced it would discontinue manufacturing traditional cathode ray tube Cathode ray tube

The cathode ray tube or CRT, invented by German [i] physicist [i] Karl Ferdinand Braun [i] ... 

  televisions. In 2006, Toshiba terminates production on plasma TVs. Toshiba quickly switched to Orion as the supplier and maker of Toshiba-branded CRT-based TVs and plasma TVs. However, to ensure its future competitiveness in the flat-panel digital television and display market, Toshiba has made a considerable investment in a new kind of display technology called SED Surface-conduction Electron-emitter Display

A Surface-conduction Electron-emitter Display is a flat panel display [i] technology that uses surface c ... 

.

Before World War II World War II

World War II, or the Second World War, was a worldwide [i] conflict [i] fought betwe ... 

, Toshiba was a member of the Mitsui Group zaibatsu. Today Toshiba is a member of the Mitsui keiretsu , and still has preferential arrangements with Mitsui Bank and the other members of the keiretsu. Membership in a keiretsu traditionally meant loyalty, both corporate and private, to other members of the keiretsu or allied keiretsu. This loyalty could extend as far as the beer Beer

Beer is one of the world's oldest alcoholic beverage [i]s, possibly brewed for the first time over 10,00 ... 

 that workers would consume, which in Toshiba's case was Kirin Kirin Brewery Company

is a Japanese [i] company. It is a member of the Mitsubishi [i] core group of companies. ... 

.

In July 2005 BNFL BNFL

British Nuclear Fuels plc or BNFL manufactures and transports nuclear fuel, runs reactors, generat... 

 confirmed it planned to sell Westinghouse, then estimated to be worth $1.8bn . However the bid attracted interest from several companies including Toshiba, General Electric General Electric

The General Electric Company, or GE is a multinational [i] American [i] ... 

 and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi Heavy Industries

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd is a Japan [i]ese company. It is one of core companies of Mitsubishi Group [i] ... 

 and when the Financial Times Financial Times

The Financial Times is an international business newspaper printed on distinctive salmon pink broadsheet [i] ... 

reported on January 23, 2006 that Toshiba had won the bid, it valued the company's offer at $5bn . The bid has surprised many industry experts who question the wisdom of selling one of the world's largest producers of nuclear reactors shortly before the market for nuclear power is expected to grow substantially; China People's Republic of China

The People's Republic of China , is a country [i] in East Asia [i]. ... 

, the United States United States

The United States of America, also known as the United States, the U.S., the U.S.A., a... 

 and the United Kingdom United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a country and sovereign state [i] tha ... 

 are all expected to invest heavily in nuclear power.

As a chip maker, Toshiba Semiconductors is a major player : During the eighties, it was one the two largest semiconductor companies . During the nineties and up to now, Toshiba Semiconductors was almost always among the Top 5. In 2005, Toshiba Semiconductors is number 4, behind Intel Intel Corporation

Intel Corporation , founded in 1968 [i] as Integrated Electronics Corporation and based in Santa Clara, California [i] ... 

, Samsung Samsung Group

The Samsung Group is composed of numerous South Korea [i]n business [i] sectors including Samsung Electronics [i] ... 

 and Texas Instruments Texas Instruments

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Texas Instruments , better known in the electronics industry as TI, is an... 

, but before STMicroelectronics STMicroelectronics

STMicroelectronics is an international leading supplier of semiconductor [i]s. ... 

.

For more information, refer to the Worldwide Top 20 Semiconductor Market Share Ranking Year by Year.

Innovation and highlights

Toshiba has created a perpendicular recording 1.8 inch Inch

An inch is the name of a unit [i] of length [i] in a number of different systems, ... 

 disc that can store 80GB.

Toshiba's brand familiarity in the United Kingdom was considerably boosted in 1980 by their now famous Blueprint Man set of adverts. This consisted of a distinctive angular cartoon Cartoon

A cartoon is any of several forms of art, with varied meanings that evolved from one to another.... 

 man, similar in shape to a crash test dummy Crash test dummy

Crash test dummies are full-scale replicas of human being [i]s, weighted and articulated to simulate the ... 

, drawn in blueprint Blueprint

A blueprint is a plan or technical drawing usually documenting an architecture [i] or an engineering [i] ... 

 and wandering around the company's blueprints, examining them and explaining why Toshiba products are superior. The adverts have been revived a number of times; in the first set, the virtues of Toshiba Hi-Fi equipment were extolled in a song parody of Alexei Sayle Alexei Sayle

Alexei David Sayle is a British [i] comedian [i], actor [i] and author. ... 

's "Ello, John, Got A New Motor?". The song parody has evolved over the years to apply to different items: from 'like your hi-fi system' to 'flatter, squarer, tube'. The actor has been changed, too. The original recording artist for the Toshiba Blueprint Man was the eccentric musician and lyricist Ian Dury Ian Dury

Ian Dury was an English [i] rock and roll [i] singer, songwriter, and bandleader. ... 

, after whose death was replaced by the lead singer from Madness, Suggs.

See also

  • Toshio Doko
  • Toshiba DynaSheet
  • Flash memory Flash memory

    Flash memory is a form of non-volatile computer memory [i] that can be electrically e ... 

    • SmartMedia SmartMedia

      SmartMedia is a flash [i] memory card [i] standard owned by Toshiba [i]. ... 

    • xD-Picture Card XD-Picture Card

      The xD-Picture Card is a type of flash memory [i] memory card [i], used mainly in digital camera [i]s. ... 

  • Digital audio player Digital audio player

    A digital audio player is a device that stores, organizes and plays digital music file [i] ... 

    • Gigabeat Gigabeat

      The gigabeat is a line of digital audio player [i]s by Toshiba [i]. Currently, there are six versions o ... 

  • List of digital camera brands

External links