ASIA Japan : Kyocera Corporation announced that it has reached a definitive agreement with SANYO Electric Co., Ltd. ("SANYO") to acquire SANYO's mobile phone business. The agreement was approved by both companies' boards of directors today and is planned to become effective April 1, 2008.

Kyocera's goal for the acquisition is to strengthen its global telecommunications equipment business. Under the agreement, Kyocera acquires a comprehensive set of assets from SANYO relating to the research, development, design, materials procurement, manufacture, sales and marketing of CDMA handsets; PHS handsets; PHS base stations; and wireless communications systems; as well as a range of related technologies, intellectual property and patents. The acquisition is forecasted to grow worldwide annual revenues from Kyocera's global telecommunications equipment business to approximately 400 billion Japanese yen (approximately US$3.7 billion).

"This transaction will yield great synergies and economies of scale in areas such as technology portfolios, R&D, procurement, design, marketing and sales," said Makoto Kawamura ( inset above ), president of Kyocera Corporation, the group's global parent. "Furthermore, the Kyocera and SANYO product portfolios are highly complementary, and will allow us to offer a broader lineup of handsets and data devices to all of our carrier customers."

To ensure a smooth transition in the market, Kyocera plans to offer both Kyocera- and SANYO-branded products in Japan and abroad for the foreseeable future. Kyocera also plans to offer continued employment to all affected SANYO employees, totaling approximately 2,000 workers.

Kyocera will pay cash for the unit. The acquisition price will be determined through finalizing processes after April 1, 2008, based on the unit's total business value of 50 billion Japanese yen (approximately US$467 million) as agreed upon by Kyocera and SANYO, before subtracting the unit's notional business cash equivalent on hand and adding/deducting interest-bearing transfer debt and transfer cash equivalents as of April 1, 2008, as well as adjustment items agreed to separately, which could result in a final acquisition price approximating 40 billion Japanese yen (about US$375 million).

In North America, the acquisition will result in the creation of a new wholly-owned Kyocera subsidiary on April 1, 2008 that will assume the operations of the U.S.-based SANYO business units and will commence operations separate from San Diego-based Kyocera Wireless Corp., in order to maintain immediate