Funai Electric history

1968: The company opens a factory in Naka-gun.

1969: A fourth factory is opened in Tsuyama.

Funai's growth slowed however in 1970, as Tetsuro Funai explained to Forbes, "when the work force got infiltrated by Communists." Labor unrest caused by the Communist-inspired labor union forced Funai to end investment in new manufacturing facilities in Japan.

In 1980, Funai launched a sales and manufacturing subsidiary in Germany.

Funai introduced an arcade laserdisc video game, Interstellar, at Tokyo's Amusement Machine Show (AM Show) in September 1983.

Funai began to see rising sales of the VHS format, so in 1984, Funai released its first VHS video cassette player (VP-1000) for the worldwide market, while ordering all transport chassis mechanisms from Shintom for quick and efficient production.

Launched in 1987, the Rakuraku Panda, as the machine was called, became one of the year's most success consumer appliance launches, selling more than 100,000 units in its first year alone.

At the end of 1988, the company's sales had reached $103 million.

In 1989, the company established its first foreign manufacturing subsidiary, Funai Electric Malaysia, taking advantage of that country's lower labor costs.

The company's low prices helped attract a growing number of discount retailers, such as the United States' Sam's Club, which turned to Funai for its VCRs in 1990.

In 1991, a United States sales subsidiary was established in New Jersey, and it began to sell cathode ray tube (CRT) televisions.

The first of these began operations in April 1992 in Dong Guan, in the Guand Dong province.

Funai developed a new, permanent strategy in 1993 by opening two new state-of-the-art factories in China, which transferred all VHS VCRs production out from Japan.

In 1994, the company added its third Chinese plant, in Zhong Shan, also in Guand Dong province.

By 1997, Funai became the first manufacturer to sell a new VHS VCR below $100 for the North American market, while the Philips Magnavox brand they produced for was the best-seller.

In 1999, however, Wal-Mart asked Funai if it could deliver one million VCRs in time for a Wal-Mart "Early Bird" promotion.

Quickly, Tetsuro Funai, the founder, became Japan's first US dollar billionaire electronic CEO. Later, the DVD technology was formed, and by 2001, Funai sold its first DVD player for less than $100.

In 2003, the group decided to expand its production of large-screen, LCD-based screens, setting up its first manufacturing subsidiary in Thailand.

In 2008, CEO and founder Tetsuro Funai retired and stepped down from CEO to become chairman.

In August 2012, Lexmark announced that it would be ceasing production of its inkjet printer line.

In April 2013, Funai announced that it had signed an agreement to acquire Lexmark's inkjet-related technology and assets for approximately $100 million (approximately ¥ 9.5 billion).

He last appeared on Forbes' list of Japan's 50 Richest in 2015, with an estimated net worth of $630 million.