Toshiba to pay Masuoka over flash memory invention

In a deal reached at the Tokyo District Court, Toshiba agreed to pay $750,000 to Fujio Masuoka, a former Toshiba employee and now a professor at Tohoku University, concerning the invention of a flash memory chip.

The case highlights a shift in which more Japanese workers are demanding compensation for individual talent and personal contributions in a corporate culture that still largely expects employees to toil for the good of the company. One recalls the earlier blue light emitting diode case, involving Nakamura and Nichia.