Ricoh Co. and Toshiba Corp. are planning to consolidate their operations manufacturing MFPs, printers and other office equipment into a new company in 2024.

The move comes as the office equipment market, which is mostly dominated by Japanese manufacturers, is shrinking against the backdrop of digitalization, which is spurring moves to go paperless, and the COVID-19 pandemic, which has prompted working at home.

Ricoh and Toshiba will announce the plan as early as Friday, informed sources said.

The new company will also take over the development and designing operations of Ricoh and Toshiba subsidiary Toshiba Tec Corp.

The two sides are expected to maintain their respective sales divisions.

The official announcement made May 19, 2023: 

"Ricoh Co. Ltd. and Toshiba Tec Corp. hereby announce that today [May 19, 2023] at meetings of the boards of directors of both companies, the two companies resolved to conclude an agreement to set the terms and conditions for integrating businesses regarding the development and manufacturing of multifunction printers and other devices by necessary procedures such as company split effective on a specific day between April 1, 2024 and June 30, 2024, to be separately agreed upon by the two companies (hereinafter the "business integration"). The boards of directors of both companies also resolved to conclude a shareholders agreement related to the business integration.

Based on these resolutions, the two companies will perform procedures such as company split with the aim of realizing a joint venture effective on a specific day between April 1, 2024 and June 30, 2024, to be separately agreed upon by the two companies, that takes on the role of MFPs' development and manufacturing with both companies as shareholders."