Ricoh CEO Akira Oyama, right, and Toshiba Tec CEO Hironobu Nishikori announce the integration of their office equipment operations in Tokyo on May 19. (Photo by Mayumi Tsumita)
TSUYOSHI TAMEHIRO, AYA ONISHI and KEIICHI FURUKAWA, Nikkei staff writers |
TOKYO — When Ricoh and Toshiba announced plans Friday to combine production of printers, copiers and other office machines, they cited declining demand and the rise of remote work. But preventing the outflow of cutting-edge technology to China may be another factor.
“The coronavirus changed the landscape,” Ricoh President and CEO Akira Oyama told a news conference here in a blunt assessment of the restructuring’s timing.
