I want to share with you significant, exciting news. This morning, Western Digital Corporation announced an agreement to acquire SanDisk Corporation, creating a global leader in storage technology. The combination is the next step in the transformation of Western Digital into a storage solutions company with global scale, extensive product and technology assets, and deep expertise in non-volatile memory (NVM).
SanDisk brings a 27-year history of innovation and expertise in NVM, systems solutions and manufacturing. Their portfolio and capabilities will accelerate our expansion into the high-growth
solid-state storage industry. Together, we will offer an extensive portfolio of industry-leading, innovative storage solutions to our global customer base.
As you all know, the demand for data storage has been growing with the increasing adoption of digital video, the emergence of Big Data analytics, and widespread adoption of both mobile devices and cloud computing. In this rapidly evolving marketplace, it is more important than ever to innovate. This transaction will allow us to deepen our technology expertise and be better positioned to capture the opportunities from this unprecedented growth in data.
While today’s news marks an important milestone for our business, it does not change our priorities nor our day-to-day responsibilities. This transaction is a part of our ongoing transformation to be an innovative leader in the storage industry and create long-term value for our employees, shareholders and partners. It also builds on our earlier announcement this week regarding the receipt of MOFCOM approval to integrate substantial portions of our WD and HGST subsidiaries.
Until the closing of the transaction, which is expected to occur in the third calendar quarter of 2016, it is business as usual. In the meantime, I encourage you to speak with your manager if you have any questions.
As always, I thank you for your hard work, accomplishments and support. We are here today because of your dedication and commitment to the company and our customers. I look forward to updating you on new developments in the weeks to come as we progress on our journey to be the global leader in storage technology.