14 DAY TRIAL // Micron announced it would be buying Elpida memory last year, on July 2, 2012. That means that the whole process ended up taking just a little over one year. More than we'd have expected.
Then again, there were difficulties because of the shaky situation of the memory industry, which both Elpida and Micron are part of.
The only reason Elpida even got itself acquired is because it went bankrupt after failing to keep up with the times.
Which is to say, it didn't manage to score more manufacturing orders than everyone else, Micron included.
A sad fate really. Elpida was a really big and strong name at one point. No doubt it pained Japan to lose the brand.
At least the supply chain will persist as part of Micron. As far as consolations go, it's not the best, but it's still something.
From this day on, Micron owns 100% of Elpida's equity, as approved by the Tokyo District Court.
The assets gained are thus: a 300 millimeter (mm) DRAM fabrication facility located in Hiroshima, Japan, 65 percent ownership interest in Rexchip, a 300mm DRAM fabrication facility located in Taiwan, a 100 percent ownership interest in Akita Elpida Memory, Inc., down to the assembly and test facility located in Akita, Japan.
"We are pleased to bring together Elpida with Micron to form the industry's leading pure-play memory company. This combination will result in enhanced R&D and manufacturing scale, significant cost and production synergies and a stronger memory product portfolio to provide solutions to our customers," said Micron CEO Mark Durcan.
"I want to personally thank Sakamoto-san for his strong leadership of Elpida and for his efforts in helping bring Elpida and Micron together. I look forward to working with Kinoshita-san as we seek to strengthen our combined teams," said Durcan.