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KYOCERA Announces Merger of North American Communications Equipment Units

SAN DIEGO– March 31, 2010 – Kyocera International, Inc. (“KII”), the North American headquarters of the Kyocera Group, today announced the merger of its two wholly owned subsidiaries serving the wireless communications equipment market, in the final phase of a previously announced business integration.

The merger will combine San Diego-based Kyocera Wireless Corp. (“KWC”) and Kyocera Communications, Inc. (“KCI”) effective April 1, 2010. The merged enterprise will continue under the name Kyocera Communications, Inc., and will remain a wholly owned subsidiary of KII.

Eiichi Toriyama will continue in his current responsibilities as KCI President. Rodney Lanthorne, the current president of both KWC and KII, will become vice chairman of KII’s board of directors, also effective April 1. Lanthorne, based in San Diego, will also remain as a director and member of the executive committee of Kyocera Corporation, the global parent company.

KCI was formed in 2009 following Kyocera’s acquisition of the wireless handset business of Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd., in 2008.   The subsidiary will continue its responsibilities in the Americas for the sales, marketing and service of wireless handsets produced by Kyocera Corporation. Additionally, KCI now will provide engineering and operations support services to Kyocera Corporation’s Communications Equipment division, which has assumed global responsibility for the company’s engineering and manufacturing in this segment.

“The transfer of responsibility for wireless engineering and operations to Kyocera Corporation’s Communications Equipment division on April 1 streamlines this segment in line with our global integration strategy,” Lanthorne stated. “It follows last year’s integration of the sales, marketing and service functions of Kyocera Wireless with those of the former Sanyo handset operations into Kyocera Communications, Inc., to unify our presence and value to customers in the Americas.”

About KYOCERA

Mobile communications products from Kyocera reflect a lineage of leadership — from the original wireless operations that Kyocera founded in Japan in the 1980s to the consumer wireless phone businesses it acquired from QUALCOMM Incorporated and Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd., in 2000 and 2008, respectively. The company leverages Japan's history of creating advanced consumer technologies around humanism and respect for the environment and blending them with a Western entrepreneurialism and style, resulting in a unique design language and a natural, user-friendly interface.

San Diego-based Kyocera Communications Inc. and Kyocera Wireless Corp. are responsible for Kyocera- and Sanyo-branded wireless products and accessories in the Americas. They will combine as Kyocera Communications, Inc. on April 1, 2010, to drive the convergence of telecommunications, broadband and multimedia.   The combined unit will continue to be a wholly owned subsidiary of Kyocera International, Inc., the North American headquarters and holding company for Kyocera Corporation. For more information, please visit www.kyocera-wireless.com.

Kyocera Corporation (NYSE:KYO) (TOKYO:6971) (http://global.kyocera.com/), the parent and global headquarters of the Kyocera Group, was founded in 1959 as a producer of fine ceramics (also known as "advanced ceramics"). By combining these engineered materials with metals and plastics, and integrating them with other technologies, Kyocera has become a leading supplier of telecommunications equipment, office document equipment, solar power generating systems, semiconductor packages, electronic components, cutting tools and industrial ceramics. During the year ended March 31, 2009, the company's net sales totaled 1.13 trillion yen (approximately US$11.5 billion). Kyocera marked its 50th anniversary in 2009, and the 40th anniversary of its U.S. operations. It is ranked #418 on Forbes magazine's 2009 "Global 2000" listing of the world's largest publicly traded companies.

 

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