Sharp, Hitachi tested for Nintendo DS LCD pricing

Sharp, on suspicion of Hitach Japanese regulator pricing.

Sharp and Hitachi are best known around the circles of consumer electronics for high-end LCD high-definition televisions. The two Japanese electronics companies also produce small, low-resolution LCD displays the wildly popular DS.

Making sample hand Nintendo is apparently serious business, as both Sharp and Hitachi are now under investigation by the antitrust regulator of Japan.

The Fair Trade Commission raided and searched the offices and outlets Sharp and Hitachi on the suspicion that the companies were pricing their display devices, according to Bloomberg and Kyodo News.

Japanese Fair Trade Act stipulates that any manufacturer guilty of price-fixing will be fined up to 10 percent of illegal profits.

Sharp and Hitachi providing display technology to the most popular games hand in the world today. To date, Nintendo has sold more than 17.6 million DS in the United States, about 8.5 million of which were in 2007.

Overall, the LCD business is waiting for a year in 2008, particularly in the field of television. Sharp expects to increase its capital spending 1.85 million dollars in anticipation of demand.