earthquake

Sony took a loss in its fiscal first quarter due largely to the Japanese quake and to lower TV sales, forcing the company to lower its annual forecast.

For the quarter that ended June 30, the electronics giant reported today a net loss of 15.5 billion yen ($199 million), compared with a net profit of 25.7 billion yen a year ago. Revenue dropped 10 percent to 1.49 trillion yen from 1.66 trillion yen in the prior year's quarter.

The weak quarter prompted Sony to lower its forecast for the full year. For the fiscal year … Read more

Fujitsu will cut its power usage by 15 percent this summer in parts of Japan suffering from power shortages caused by the massive March earthquake, the company said today.

Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) has been struggling to deal with nuclear power reactors severely damaged by the quake and resulting tsunami, leading to efforts in Japan to encourage lower electrical power use. Fujitsu said it will cut its own power usage in areas serviced by Tepco and Tohoku Electric Power through a variety of programs, and it's an interesting list for any company worried about power cost and supply … Read more

Toshiba has created a portable OLED lamp for use in areas hit by the earthquake and tsunamis March 11 in northeastern Japan.

It has donated 50 OLED lamps to an evacuation shelter in the city of Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture, which was hit hard by tsunami waves.

With a maximum light of 53 lumens, the lamp can be dimmed with two settings. The lowest setting is about as bright as a mobile phone display, according to Toshiba.

The device can run on four AAA batteries or a solar-powered battery that connects via a USB port. Depending on the battery and the brightness setting, it can operate for more than 20 hours per charge.

Toshiba only plans to make 100 units of the lamp, using its own OLED panels and parts from other companies. It doesn't plan to market the lamp for the time being.

(Via Nikkei) … Read more

I happen to live in something of an earthquake zone and it seems that these things do happen quite randomly, such as when you're sitting at home watching TV.

However, some in Italy feel that it's about time seismologists were held responsible for their supposed ability to recognize when a trembler is going to hit a certain neighborhood.

Science magazine reports that Enzo Boschi, the president of Italy's National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology, and his fellow seismologists have been charged with manslaughter after they allegedly didn't alert the residents of L'Aquila in Central Italy … Read more

Struggling with a continuing nuclear crisis and strains on its power supplies, Japan is thinking of requiring that all new buildings, including homes, come equipped with rooftop solar panels by 2030, according to a recent Nikkei newspaper report.

Prime Minister Naoto Kan may announce the plan this week at a G8 summit in France, the business daily reported. Kan has pledged to review Japan's energy policy and increase renewable sources following the crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, which was hit by the March 11 earthquake and tsunamis.

Kan hopes a solar-energy requirement for new buildings, along with technological innovation, would help reduce the cost of solar-power generation.

The government's current energy policy includes plans to increase nuclear energy to more than half of the total supply by 2030 as a means of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Japan now gets about 30 percent of its electricity from nuclear sources. … Read more

Like many other Japanese companies, Canon faced serious troubles after a powerful earthquake and tsunami struck the country several months ago.

Fifteen employees of the imaging giant were injured in buildings at Utsunomiya (Tochigi Prefecture), and an array of buildings spread across northern Japan were damaged. Those affected plants and facilities manufactured critical parts and components for a wide range of Canon products. In response, the company safely lowered its earnings forecast to reflect the impact of the disaster on its supply chain after suspending operations at several locations for nearly a month.

According to a recent Reuters interview with … Read more

After earlier predicting a profitable fiscal year, Sony now expects to lose a total of 260 billion yen ($3.2 billion) for the year, a change due in huge part to the effects of the Japanese earthquake.

In a statement (PDF) released today, the electronics giant revised its figures for its fiscal year ended March 31 from those originally offered in February. The forecast of a $3.2 billion loss is quite different than its earlier projection of a profit of 70 billion yen ($857 million) for the year.

Sony also slightly lowered its revenue forecast to 7.18 trillion … Read more

Sony Ericsson saw its profits cut in half during the first quarter, but the company managed to stay in the black despite a drop in shipments and a blow to its supply chain from the Japanese earthquake.

For the quarter ended March 31, the mobile phone maker reported net income of 11 million euros ($15.7 million), down from 21 million euros in the year-ago quarter. Despite the drop, results beat the average of analysts' estimates, which had called for a loss of 27.1 million euros, according to Bloomberg. Sales fell 19 percent to 1.145 billion euros from … Read more

Texas Instruments said the Japan earthquake damaged two of its factories, hurt demand in the country, and cut into its earnings.

The chipmaker, which recently said it would buy National Semiconductor, reported first-quarter earnings of $666 million, or 55 cents a share, on revenue of $3.39 billion. Wall Street was looking for earnings of 58 cents a share on revenue of $3.39 billion.

TI said that earthquake-related expenses in Japan shaved about 2 cents a share off its operating profit.

Read more of "TI: Japan earthquake hurt earnings, outlook" at ZDNet's Between the Lines.