On March 8 , 2012 , Western Digital ( WD ) acquired Hitachi Global Storage Technologies for $ 3.9 billion in cash and 25 million shares of WD common stock valued at approximately $ 0.9 billion . The deal resulted in Hitachi , Ltd. owning approximately 10 percent of WD shares outstanding , and reserving the right to designate two individuals to the board of directors of WD . Citing antitrust concerns , China 's Ministry of Commerce required HGST to operate autonomously from Western Digital , restricting outright integration between the companies ' operations . As a result , HGST continued to operate independently with its own product lines and product development . As part of the deal , Western Digital agreed to trade assets with Toshiba , with Toshiba receiving assets for the production of 3.5-inch hard drives , in exchange for a Toshiba factory in Thailand for producing 2.5-inch drives ( which had been inactive since the 2011 floods )
2011 floods
2011 Thailand floods
HGST