Etuhiko Shoyama, Hitachi Ltd. president and chief executive,

JAPAN - FEBRUARY 07: Etuhiko Shoyama, Hitachi Ltd. president and chief executive, left, and Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. President Kunio Nakamura speak at a joint news conference in Tokyo, Japan, Monday, February 7, 2005. Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., the world's largest consumer-electronics maker, and Hitachi Ltd., Japan's biggest electronics maker, said they will tie up in plasma display development, production and marketing operations. (Photo by Haruyoshi Yamaguchi/Bloomberg via Getty Images)