Toshiba: The memory saga is nearly behind us! Apple: Not so fast

Apple has not agreed terms for participating in the Bain Capital-led consortium to buy Toshiba's flash chip business, holding up the deal. Last week Toshiba approved the sale of its interests in the flash foundry joint ventures it holds with WDC to the group, turning down competing bids from Hon Hai and a WDC-led consortium. …

[Swarthy]

Why is this so hard?

Apple has almost 14 times the available cash, and they could send it to Toshiba directly from their current tax-haven. I get (sort of) WDC's gripes about the sale; but once the winning bid was accepted, why are the bidding members having trouble scraping together the money? Are they that afraid of WDC rocking the boat?

[Steve Todd]

Re: Why is this so hard?

For Apple it's not the money, it's the terms of the deal that they're haggling over.

For Bain, they are also short of the money that they are supposed to be raising via financiers.

I'm assuming that both of the above are quite solvable, but WD will be doing their best to block things so the deal may take a while to complete.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Why is this so hard?

Apple isn't doing this as an investment, but rather to further their business goals. Most likely it is as many have suggested, that they are in it to get some guaranteed NAND/DRAM supply. If so, they are probably haggling over the amount being guaranteed to them, or how it will be priced.

[Anonymous Coward]

Any idea what Seagate gets?

Any Ownership? Capital for % of NAND output? Potential JV with Toshiba + STX SSD assets post deal closure?

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Any idea what Seagate gets?

One less competitor, assuming the various consortium partners who need flash like Dell and Apple will collectively take all the output so it isn't sold on the open market?

[ecarlseen]

Of course they're in no hurry

Toshiba is desperate, and the only other offer on the table (WD) is a hideous lowball. The longer they wait, the better the deal gets.

[Speltier]

Bain Capital

Another issue is that you always have to check your jewels before getting into bed with an equity company. Their sole reason for existence is to line their own pockets-- sure you might get 30% of the fab output: where 50% of the fab workers were laid off and remainder replaced with imported labor, and equipment maintenance (never mind upgrades) requires a CEO's signature and the CEO is paid based on gross profit this quarter. Bain will get their money + world + dog profit and leave the financially exsanguinated husk to the suckers, er, partners.