A couple of weeks ago it was reported that Toshiba had announced that they would be selling off their memory chip business. While it was unclear who would be buying the company (or a stake in it), names such as Amazon, Google, and Apple was tossed around. Now it seems that in a separate report from NHK and Reuters (via MacRumors), Apple is eyeing a 20% stake.
The report claims that Apple is apparently eyeing to own at least a 20% stake in Toshiba’s memory business, if not greater, and that the company could spend billions of dollars in order to achieve that. The reason for not completely buying out the company is because there is concern by the Japanese government about a non-Japanese entity owning the company, which is why Apple plans for Toshiba to keep some shares so that there will be partial Japanese ownership.
It is also said that Apple could be teaming up with their manufacturing partner Foxconn who is reportedly eyeing a 30% stake in the company, although it is said that Toshiba might reject Foxconn’s bid due to the company’s ties with China. It is unclear what Apple plans to do with the company, but if they are able to control the components which are used by many smartphone manufacturers, that will be a pretty huge source of revenue for the company as well, in addition to being able to supply themselves with memory chips.
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