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https://www.ft.com/content/94795848-e6e3-11e9-b112-9624ec9edc59
fficials in the US government have suggested issuing credit to companies such as Nokia and Ericsson to enable them to match the generous financing terms that Huawei offers to its customers, according to two people with knowledge of the situation.
The move is part of a wider push to fund a rival to the Chinese company, which is the largest telecoms equipment maker in the world, but which the US believes poses a security risk to it and its allies.
One senior government official said: “We gave up our superiority in making telecoms equipment decades ago, and now we are realising that this might not have been the best choice for national security reasons. Almost every department and agency is desperately looking right now for ways to get back into this game.”
https://www.ft.com/content/94795848-e6e3-11e9-b112-9624ec9edc59
Japanese electronics-maker Sony will invest in a new factory in Nagasaki Prefecture to produce semiconductor image sensors used in smartphone cameras, Nikkei has learned. The company aims to capitalize on growing demand for high-end cameras in the devices that will take advantage of ultra-fast 5G networks.
Sony plans to allocate 100 billion yen ($918 million) for the project in its budget for the next fiscal year, and to have the plant online as soon as the fiscal year that starts in April 2021.
At that point, it will be the company's first new semiconductor plant to go into operation in five years. Sony expects the market for image sensors to continue growing as smartphone makers equip their products with increasingly sophisticated cameras. It believes demand will also get a boost as next-generation 5G networks become more widespread, and self-driving cars and factory automation come into use.
Sony was the world's biggest image sensor maker in 2018, with a 50% market share. It aims to use the new plant to lift its global share to 60% by 2025. Rival Samsung Electronics, which commands a 20% share of the global image sensor market, is also expanding its investment.
https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/Sony-invests-900m-in-chips-to-seize-5G-smartphone-demand