Notice regarding Canon’s semiconductor equipment business operations

TOKYO, Canon Inc. (President and COO: Tsuneji Uchida, “Canon”) and Canon Marketing Japan Inc. (President: Masami Kawasaki, “Canon Marketing Japan”) announced that both companies reached a basic agreement today regarding the transfer of Canon Marketing Japan’s semiconductor equipment-related business to Canon, effective January 1, 2010.

Currently, Canon Marketing Japan’s semiconductor equipment business division handles the sales, service and support of mainly semiconductor exposure systems and LCD exposure systems. In order to facilitate greater flexibility in response to the rapidly changing semiconductor equipment market, this division will be transferred to Canon to realize an integrated framework, spanning from development and design to production, sales, service and support.

The move will enable not only the building of an organizational structure in which market and customer feedback is quickly relayed to development teams and swiftly reflected in products, but also the boosting of technological strength on the sales front.

In accordance with the restructuring, plans call for most of the employees of Canon Marketing Japan’s semiconductor equipment business division to be transferred to Canon.