Misplaced Pages

#268731

56-468: Commercially released in 1999, the movement is found in watches distributed by the Seiko Watch Corporation , including its Credor , Grand Seiko , Presage , and Prospex brands. The Spring Drive uses a conventional mainspring and barrel along with automatic and/or stem winding to store energy, just as in a mechanical watch. However, the escapement and balance wheel in mechanical watches

112-460: A Geneva Observatory competition with a score of 58.19, surpassing all previous records. Swiss companies ranked first to third for their quartz movements and Seiko ranked fourth to tenth for its mechanical movements. In the competition, there were special movements for the competition. In 1969, Seiko launched the Astron , the world's first commercial quartz wristwatch ; when it was introduced, it cost

168-462: A corporate group . In some jurisdictions around the world, holding companies are called parent companies , which, besides holding stock in other companies, can conduct trade and other business activities themselves. Holding companies reduce risk for the shareholders , and can permit the ownership and control of a number of different companies. The New York Times uses the term parent holding company . Holding companies can be subsidiaries in

224-488: A tiered structure . Holding companies are also created to hold assets such as intellectual property or trade secrets , that are protected from the operating company. That creates a smaller risk when it comes to litigation . In the United States, 80% of stock, in voting and value, must be owned before tax consolidation benefits such as tax-free dividends can be claimed. That is, if Company A owns 80% or more of

280-408: A LCD display capable of displaying six digits for hours, minutes and seconds; in 1975, Seiko introduced the world's first digital watch with a stopwatch function and a diver's watch with a titanium case. In 1978, Seiko introduced the world's first quartz diver's watch with a water resistance of 600 meters; in 1982, the world's first wristwatch with a television; in 1983, the world's first wristwatch with

336-497: A daily rate of ±0.5 sec) and power reserve (5 days) indicator. Seiko Seiko Group Corporation ( セイコーグループ株式会社 , Seikō Gurūpu kabushiki gaisha ) , commonly known as Seiko ( / ˈ s eɪ k oʊ / SAY -koh , Japanese: [seːkoː] ), is a Japanese maker of watches, clocks, electronic devices, semiconductors , jewelry, and optical products . Founded in 1881 by Kintarō Hattori in Tokyo , Seiko introduced

392-482: A major influence on subsequent chronographs around the world. The company also launched the Grand Seiko V.F.A., a mechanical wristwatch with ultra-high accuracy of plus or minus two seconds per day, and the U.T.D., a mechanical wristwatch with a thickness of 1.98 mm. Since the 1970s, Seiko has introduced a variety of wristwatches with various world firsts: in 1973, Seiko introduced the world's first wristwatch with

448-517: A matter of broadcast regulation . In the United States, a personal holding company is defined in section 542 of the Internal Revenue Code . A corporation is a personal holding company if both of the following requirements are met: A parent company is a company that owns enough voting power in another firm (or subsidiary ) to control management and operations by influencing or electing its board of directors . The definition of

504-425: A parent company differs from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, with the definition normally being defined by way of laws dealing with companies in that jurisdiction. When an existing company establishes a new company and keeps majority shares with itself, and invites other companies to buy minority shares, it is called a parent company. A parent company could simply be a company that wholly owns another company, which

560-547: A record-and-play function and an analog quartz chronograph; in 1984, the world's first wristwatch computer; and in 1986, the world's first diver's watch with a ceramic case water-resistant to 1000 meters. In 1974, Seiko launched Credor, a luxury brand using precious metals and jewelry, and in 1979, Alba, a low-priced brand for young people. In 1985, Orient and Seiko established a joint factory. In 1986, Baselworld allowed non-European manufacturers to participate, and Seiko began exhibiting that year. In 1988, Seiko invented

616-475: A revolutionary self-winding mechanism, the Magic Lever, developed by Seiko. The Magic Lever was simple in structure and had high winding performance, and popularized automatic watches among the general public. In 1960, Seiko released the Grand Seiko, aimed to be the most accurate wristwatch in the world. Seiko quickly developed quartz technology in preparation for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics , and in 1963 launched

SECTION 10

#1732855395269

672-465: A tending subsidiary of the purchasing company, which, in turn, becomes the parent company of the subsidiary. (A holding below 50% could be sufficient to give a parent company material influence if they are the largest individual shareholder or if they are placed in control of the running of the operation by non-operational shareholders.) In the United Kingdom, the term holding company is defined by

728-472: A watch with a then-target 48-hour power reserve impossible; another attempt in 1993 was also unsuccessful for the same reason. It was not until a third attempt in 1997, using a quartz crystal and integrated circuit with energy consumption approximately one one-hundredth that used in the initial attempt in 1982, that a Spring Drive watch with sufficient power reserve was deemed feasible. Over 600 prototypes were produced during development. The Spring Drive movement

784-464: A wider viewing angle than conventional LCD displays. In 2010, Seiko launched the world's first solar radio-controlled digital watch based on the active matrix EPD system, advancing the expression of information in digital watches. In 2012, Seiko launched the world's first GPS solar watch, the Seiko Astron GPS Solar. Seiko positioned this watch as the second revolutionary wristwatch after

840-650: A year. The scarcity of raw materials during the war diverted much of Seiko's production to on-board instruments for military aircraft and ships. In contrast to Japan, Germany utilized both domestically produced and Swiss-produced watches. Japan's isolation in the Pacific meant the country could not rely on importing foreign timepieces. In 1951, Seiko broadcast its first radio commercial in Japan, and when Japan's first commercial television station opened in 1953, it broadcast Japan's first television commercial. The first Japanese commercial

896-401: Is a Japanese word meaning "exquisite" ( 精巧 , Seikō ) ; it is homophonous with the word for "success" ( 成功 , Seikō ) . In 1895, the watch dealer purchased the corner of Ginza 4-chome (the present-day location of WAKO ), and constructed a building with a clock tower (16 meters from top to bottom), setting up shop at the new address. Seiko launched its first in-house pocket watch,

952-458: Is defined by Part 1.2, Division 6, Section 46 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) , which states: A body corporate (in this section called the first body) is a subsidiary of another body corporate if, and only if: Toronto-based lawyer Michael Finley has stated, "The emerging trend that has seen international plaintiffs permitted to proceed with claims against Canadian parent companies for

1008-519: Is headquartered in Mahwah, New Jersey , alongside the Coserv repair center. In the United States, Seiko watches are sold primarily by fine jewelers, department stores, and 19 Seiko company stores. Seiko produces watches with quartz , kinetic , solar , and mechanical movements of varying prices, ranging from around ¥4,000 (US$ 45) to ¥50,000,000 (US$ 554,000). Seiko has created many different brands in Japan and

1064-431: Is intended to rotate eight times per second; the rotational speed is sampled once every rotation and a variable braking force is continuously applied to maintain that target frequency. As the glide wheel directly powers the seconds hand of the watch, this results in a true continuously sweeping second hand – in contrast to the beats per time motion resulting from the back-and-forth movement of traditional mechanical watches or

1120-410: Is replaced by Seiko's Tri-synchro Regulator system, a phase-locked loop wherein a rotor, which Seiko refers to as a "glide wheel", is powered by the mainspring barrel via a stator . The glide wheel in turn powers a reference quartz crystal and accompanying integrated circuit which controls an electromagnetic brake which then regulates the rotational speed of the glide wheel itself. The glide wheel

1176-453: Is sometimes done on a per- market basis. For example, in Atlanta both WNNX and later WWWQ are licensed to "WNNX LiCo, Inc." (LiCo meaning "license company"), both owned by Susquehanna Radio (which was later sold to Cumulus Media ). In determining caps to prevent excessive concentration of media ownership , all of these are attributed to the parent company, as are leased stations , as

SECTION 20

#1732855395269

1232-509: The Financial Times reported the Spring Drive movement’s enthusiastic reception prompted Seiko's launch of higher-end pieces. Harvard Business School reported: "In 2003, Shinji Hattori, a great-grandson of Seiko's founder, became Seiko Watch Company's president and CEO and felt that Seiko should raise its perceived image outside Japan. In management's view, Seiko could claim distinction as

1288-473: The Companies Act 2006 at section 1159. It defines a holding company as a company that holds a majority of the voting rights in another company, or is a member of another company and has the right to appoint or remove a majority of its board of directors, or is a member of another company and controls alone, pursuant to an agreement with other members, a majority of the voting rights in that company. After

1344-613: The financial crisis of 2007–2008 , many U.S. investment banks converted to holding companies. According to the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council 's website, JPMorgan Chase , Bank of America , Citigroup , Wells Fargo , and Goldman Sachs were the five largest bank holding companies in the finance sector, as of December 2013 , based on total assets. The Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935 caused many energy companies to divest their subsidiary businesses. Between 1938 and 1958

1400-467: The 31-year-old Kintaro was appointed director of the Tokyo Clockmaker and Watchmaker Association and member of Tokyo Chamber of Commerce. In 1892, Hattori began to produce clocks under the name Seikosha ( 精工 舎 , Seikōsha ) , meaning, roughly, "House of Exquisite Workmanship." According to Seiko's official company history, titled A Journey In Time: The Remarkable Story of Seiko (2003), Seiko

1456-503: The 4,000 yen range. In the same year, the company released the Marvel, which represented a significant improvement in accuracy, quality, and productivity over the previous model. This was achieved by increasing the outer diameter of the movement compared to the previous model. In 1958, Seiko developed the 'Dia-Shock' anti-shock device. In 1959, Seiko launched the Gyro Marvel, which featured

1512-468: The Astron, which was launched in 1969, and described that it had the ultimate practical functionality, being able to instantly display extremely accurate time anywhere in the world and working as long as there is light. Seiko's low power consumption GPS receiver contributed to the practical application of this watch. K. Hattori & Co. (currently Seiko Group Corporation) was one of the three core companies of

1568-474: The Crown Chronograph, in 1964, Japan's first world time wristwatch in the same year, and Japan's first diver's wristwatch in 1965. In 1967, Japan's first diver's watch with 300m water resistance was launched. In 1967, Seiko won second and third place in a watch accuracy competition at a Neuchâtel Observatory competition; the competition was canceled after that year. In 1968, Seiko took first place in

1624-460: The Seiko 5 sub brand is a reference to 5 attributes that any watch belonging to it would typically exhibit, those being: Holding company A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own stock of other companies to form

1680-566: The Seiko Crystal Chronometer, a dramatically smaller version of its previous quartz clock. The quartz clock Seiko had supplied to a broadcasting station in 1959 was about the size of a wardrobe, but this new product ran on two batteries and was portable. At the Tokyo Olympics, Seiko's mechanical stopwatches were selected as the official Olympic watches due to their high accuracy. Seiko launched Japan's first chronograph wristwatch,

1736-696: The Timekeeper, in 1895; the first Japanese-made wristwatch, the Laurel, in 1913; and the first Seiko-branded wristwatch in 1924. In order to avoid an ill omen believed to be associated with the word "GLORY" in Japanese, Seikosha changed its trade mark to "Seiko" in 1924. In 1929, the Seiko pocket watch was adopted as the official watch for the drivers of Japanese Government Railways . Military watches produced for Japanese troops during World War II were manufactured by Seiko, which by 1938, produced 1.2 million timepieces

Spring Drive - Misplaced Pages Continue

1792-455: The United Kingdom, is generally held that an organisation holding a 'controlling stake' in a company (a holding of over 51% of the stock) is in effect the de facto parent company of the firm, having overriding material influence over the held company's operations, even if no formal full takeover has been enacted. Once a full takeover or purchase is enacted, the held company is seen to have ceased to operate as an independent entity but to have become

1848-616: The age of 13, with multiple stints in different watch shops, such as “Kobayashi Clock Shop”, run by an expert technician named Seijiro Sakurai; “Kameda Clock Shop” in Nihonbashi; and “Sakata Clock Shop” in Ueno, where he learned how to both sell and repair timepieces. Around the time of Seiko's founding, watchmakers in Tokyo, Osaka , and Nagoya were studying and producing pocket watches based on Western products. Japanese wholesalers needed to purchase all

1904-492: The allegedly wrongful activity of their foreign subsidiaries means that the corporate veil is no longer a silver bullet to the heart of a plaintiff's case." The parent subsidiary company relationship is defined by Part 1, Section 5, Subsection 1 of the Companies Act, which states: 5.—(1) For the purposes of this Act, a corporation shall, subject to subsection (3), be deemed to be a subsidiary of another corporation, if — In

1960-414: The company has the technology and production facilities to design and manufacture all of these parts in-house. The company was incorporated (K. Hattori & Co., Ltd.) in 1917 and renamed Hattori Seiko Co., Ltd. in 1983 and Seiko Corporation in 1990. After reconstructing and creating its operating subsidiaries (such as Seiko Watch Corporation and Seiko Clock Inc.), it became a holding company in 2001 and

2016-591: The eve of the Australian Open in Melbourne , Shinji Hattori, President of Seiko Watch Corporation, presented to Novak Djokovic a Seiko Astron GPS Solar limited edition worth $ 1700. It was launched worldwide with a million units, symbolizing Seiko's partnership with the world's no.1 professional tennis player. Seiko – often criticised for quality standards that let misaligned chapter rings and bezels slip through – decided to move its brand positioning upmarket; in 2015,

2072-540: The former Seiko Group . Seiko Group consisted of K. Hattori (SEIKO), Daini Seikosha (currently Seiko Instruments Inc. , SII), and Suwa Seikosha (currently Seiko Epson Corporation , EPSON). Although they had some common shareholders, including the key members of the Hattori family (posterity of Kintarō Hattori), the three companies in the group were not affiliated; they were managed and operated independently. On January 26, 2009, Seiko Holdings and Seiko Instruments announced

2128-631: The imported timepieces from foreign trading companies established in Yokohama, Kobe, and other open port areas. In 1885, Hattori began dealing directly with these foreign trading firms in the Yokohama settlement focused on the wholesaling and retailing of western (imported) timepieces and machinery. Over the years, Hattori developed a close partnership with multiple foreign trading firms, including C&J Favre-Brandt, F. Perregaux & Co. , Zanuti & Cie. and Siber & Brennwald , allowing him to obtain exclusive imported timepieces and machinery, which

2184-479: The international market including Lorus, Pulsar , and Alba . Seiko has several lines such as the Seiko 5, luxury "Credor," "Prospex," "Presage," "Velatura", "Astron" and the " Grand Seiko " series. Seiko 5 is a sub brand that spawned with the introduction of the Seiko Sportsmatic 5 in 1963. Since then, many models have been introduced into the lineup, comprising a variety of different styles. The name of

2240-571: The number of holding companies declined from 216 to 18. An energy law passed in 2005 removed the 1935 requirements, and has led to mergers and holding company formation among power marketing and power brokering companies. In US broadcasting , many major media conglomerates have purchased smaller broadcasters outright, but have not changed the broadcast licenses to reflect this, resulting in stations that are (for example) still licensed to Jacor and Citicasters , effectively making them such as subsidiary companies of their owner iHeartMedia . This

2296-429: The only 'mechatronic manufacturer' in the world – a vertically integrated watchmaker that excelled in both mechanical watchmaking and micro-electronics." Seiko Corporation of America distributes Seiko watches and clocks, as well as Pulsar and Lorus brand watches, in the United States. The models available in the United States are typically a smaller subset of the full line produced in Japan. Seiko Corporation of America

Spring Drive - Misplaced Pages Continue

2352-511: The same as a medium-sized car. Seiko later went on to introduce the first quartz chronograph. The year 1969 marked the launch of the Astron, as well as several other wristwatches that Seiko positioned as its own historical models. In the same year, Seiko introduced the Five Sport Speed Timer, the world's first Magic Lever watch with a vertical clutch and column wheel. It was a resounding success for its compactness and practicality, and had

2408-602: The same brand of watch enabled Seiko to improve technology through competition and hedge risk . It also reduced risk of production problems, since one company can increase production in the case of decreased production in the other parties. Seiko remains as one of the world's most recognised watchmaking brands. At present, quartz and Spring Drive watches are manufactured in Shiojiri, Nagano ( Epson ), and mechanical watches in Shizukuishi, Iwate (Morioka Seiko Instruments). Some of

2464-540: The stock of Company B, Company A will not pay taxes on dividends paid by Company B to its stockholders, as the payment of dividends from B to A is essentially transferring cash within a single enterprise. Any other shareholders of Company B will pay the usual taxes on dividends, as they are legitimate and ordinary dividends to these shareholders. Sometimes, a company intended to be a pure holding company identifies itself as such by adding "Holding" or "Holdings" to its name. The parent company–subsidiary company relationship

2520-422: The tick of typical quartz watches. The movement is specified to ±15 seconds per month. The design was first conceived by Yoshikazu Akahane at Suwa Seikosha in 1977 and patents were applied for it in 1982; in total, no fewer than 230 patents have been applied worldwide for this movement. Initial development was hindered by the high energy consumption of the reference quartz crystal and integrated circuit making

2576-402: The two companies would merge on October 1, 2009, through a share swap. Seiko Instruments became a wholly owned subsidiary of Seiko Holdings as of 1 October 2009. On October 1, 2022, Seiko Holdings was renamed Seiko Group. Epson still develops and manufactures some of the Seiko's highest grade watches, but is managed and operated completely independently from Seiko Group. On January 10, 2014, on

2632-453: The watches exported abroad, such as the Seiko 5, are also manufactured in Ninohe, Iwate , by Ninohe Tokei Kogyo (established in 1974 as a parts factory for Seiko). In 1881, Seiko founder Kintarō Hattori opened a watch and jewelry shop called "K. Hattori" ([服部時計店] Error: {{Lang}}: invalid parameter: |labels= ( help ) ) in Tokyo. Kintarō Hattori had been working as clockmaker apprentice since

2688-544: The watches were relaunched under the name "Seiko Kinetic". In 1998, Grand Seiko was released with the first new mechanical movement in 20 years. In 1999, Seiko launched Spring Drive , the world's first mechanical wristwatch with the accuracy of quartz. In 2004, the Astron, launched in 1969, was selected as an IEEE milestone. In the same year, Seiko began operating the Shizukuishi Watch Studio, which specializes in high-end watches. In 2005, Seiko launched

2744-412: The world's first commercial quartz wristwatch in 1969. Seiko is widely known for its wristwatches. Seiko, Citizen and Rolex are the only three watch companies considered to be vertically integrated . Seiko is able to design and develop all the components of a watch, as well as assemble, adjust, inspect and ship them in-house. Seiko's mechanical watches consist of approximately 200 parts, and

2800-474: The world's first solar-powered analog watch that adjusts its accuracy by receiving three radio signals from Japan, Germany, and the United States. In 2006, Seiko launched the world's first wristwatch based on microcapsule E-ink technology. This watch was the first Seiko watch to win an award at the Grand Prix de Genève for its innovative ability to bend the display part, in addition to providing more contrast and

2856-469: The world's first wristwatch with an innovative mechanism called "Auto Quartz", in which a rotating oscillating weight rotates in response to the wearer's arm movements, generating electricity to power the quartz. This mechanism was developed with the aim of creating a quartz watch that does not require battery replacement. This mechanism was adopted as Seiko's core movement and later renamed "A.G.S.". (Automatic Generating System). In 1991, to increase popularity,

SECTION 50

#1732855395269

2912-558: Was announced publicly in 1997 and presented at the 1998 Basel Watch Fair . In 1999, the first production models were made available in Japan as limited edition, manual-wind watches in both the Credor and Seiko brands. The first non-limited model was released in Japan in 2002. The 1st spring drive automatic-wind movement of Grand Seiko was released in September 2004, the reference number is SBGA001. The first automatic-wind Spring Drive model

2968-420: Was not available elsewhere at that time. Hattori's shop became increasingly popular due to the rarity of the imported watches the shop was selling, which couldn't be found anywhere else in Japan. The growing success allowed him to relocate the company to the main street of Ginza (Tokyo), still the epicenter of commerce in Japan to this day. In 1891, 10 years after the establishment of K. Hattori & Co.,

3024-507: Was released in 2005, and coincided with the introduction of the Spring Drive movement to markets outside of Japan. Early models, manual wind and 48h power reserve: Current calibers with standard features. Time accuracy: monthly rate within ±15 sec (equivalent to a daily rate of ±1 sec) and power reserve (72h) indicator. Current calibers with higher power reserve and higher accuracy. Time accuracy: monthly rate within ±10 sec (equivalent to

3080-532: Was renamed Seiko Holdings Corporation on July 1, 2007. Seiko Holdings Corporation was renamed Seiko Group Corporation as of October 1, 2022. Seiko watches were originally produced by two different Hattori family companies (not subsidiaries of K. Hattori & Co); one was Daini Seikosha Co. (now known as Seiko Instruments Inc., a subsidiary of Seiko Holdings since 2009) and the other was Suwa Seikosha Co. (now known as Seiko Epson Corporation, an independent publicly traded company). Having two companies both producing

3136-461: Was supposed to be broadcast as a time signal at noon, but the video technician mishandled the equipment and the commercial lasted only three seconds, and it was rebroadcast at 7:00 p.m. the same day. In 1956, Seiko launched Japan's first automatic wristwatch , the Automatic. The retail price at the time was 13,500 yen, more than three times the price of men's wristwatches, which were generally in

#268731