Japan Electronics Emulates Detroit Autos Before Bankruptcy: Tech
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In 2004, Kameyama, a town of 50,000 people in central Japan, boomed when Sharp Corp. started making liquid-crystal-display panels there.
Sharp dominated the industry with a 22 percent market share in LCD TVs and poured $6.6 billion into Kameyama, putting up two state-of-the-art factories and creating 3,000 jobs. Farmland was turned into housing as workers in their 20s moved in from as far away as Brazil. Taxes from Sharp paid for the renovation of the train station and a new school with features like a castle.