Toshiba to Merge Various ICT Functions Into Single Consolidated IoT Subsidiary

Toshiba will merge several information and communication technology (ICT) business segments into a single Cloud & Solutions Co. subsidiary April 1 so it may “proactively promote the business that exploits” the Internet of Things, the company said in a Thursday announcement. Toshiba’s current Corporate Information Systems Division, Corporate Software Engineering Center and part of Toshiba Solutions Corp.’s system integration business will be merged into the Cloud & Solutions Co.; Toshiba I.S. Corp., which supplies information systems and services to the Toshiba Group, will become a Cloud & Solutions Co. subsidiary, Toshiba said. “Success in realizing new IoT-based services and solutions lies in deploying software technology, including cloud computing and big data processing, in order to handle huge amounts of data at high speed,” Toshiba said. “ICT specialists and engineers within Toshiba Group will be brought together in a unified organization, so as to enhance the development of big-data analysis technology, real-time information processing technology and other ICT-related technologies.” The new organization “will also develop Toshiba’s common IoT platform by combining diverse expertise and experience from across Toshiba’s business segments,” it said. “Toshiba’s common IoT platform will serve as infrastructure for offering advanced connectivity of systems and devices over the Internet, with the aim of creating new IoT services and solutions that realize all-encompassing monitoring, analysis and control.” Toshiba vowed it will undergo “a rapid shift in focus from being a business that merely provides products towards a business model that provides products that realize excellent user experiences.”