Toshiba memory business sale becoming a political spectacle

There have been some new developments in the ongoing Toshiba saga, the sale of the company's memory business has entered the second round of bidding but media reports indicate the transaction is increasingly becoming a highly political spectacle. In the paragraphs below, EE Times outlines some of the main schisms that are at play now:

Ultimately the winner won’t be the big bidder. It will depend on who curries favor in a way that satisfies the whims of politicians, bureaucrats and Toshiba’s top management, several Japanese sources told us.

If so, what do they want?

On one hand, politicians yearn the prestige of saving too-big-to-fail Toshiba and promoting Japanese nationalism.

Bureaucrats here have never stopped believing in top-down industrial policy — despite its mixed results since the decline of “Japan, Inc.” They want credit for “restoring” Japanese electronics industry.

In another precinct, top management at Toshiba see the sales of its prized chip unit as the only solution to save their skin and avoid the risk of getting delisted from the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

Full details EE Times