Japanese Toshiba sells Tokyo's plush Ginza for USD 1.4 million

Toshiba officials said Wednesday it's selling its building in Tokyo's plush Ginza district for 161 billion yen (US$1.4 million; EUR1 million) to concentrate on its core electronics businesses.

Photo: Japanese Toshiba sells Tokyo's plush Ginza for USD 1.4 million

Japanese electronics maker Toshiba Corp., which has been trying to strengthen its computer chips and gadget operations, said the sale of the building to Tokyu Land Corp. will be completed next month.

"This sale will increase the corporate value of Toshiba through realization of a fair value for the Ginza Toshiba Building and allowing concentration of resources in core businesses," it said in a statement.

There has been speculation in the Japanese media that Toshiba may buy Sony Corp.'s advanced computer chips production operations.

Toshiba and Sony officials say no decision has been made.

Sony partnered with Toshiba and IBM Corp. in developing the "Cell" microprocessor. Cell powers Sony's PlayStation 3 video game console, some IBM servers and specialized, graphics-intensive hardware, but it has yet to emerge as a mainstream processor.

Sony has been struggling to boost profits at its core electronics operations, shedding unprofitable units, to face off intensifying competition.

In general, prices have been dropping not only on lower-end chips but all gadgets, making it harder for manufacturers to maintain profits.

Toshiba is not headquartered in the Ginza building. The Ginza building has offices and restaurants in a bustling part of downtown Tokyo.

Toshiba said its earnings forecasts for the fiscal year ending March 2008 will be disclosed as soon as a review is completed.