Time to kill off zombie company Sharp

SORRY, but can anyone provide a good reason why Sharp should still be in business?

As Japan Inc icons go, the beleaguered tech giant counts as borderline royalty. Founded in 1912 - the year Emperor Meiji, whose reforms transformed Japan from feudal state to capitalist power, died - Sharp was among the core engines of the nation's global ambitions. In 1964, the Japanese revelled in Sharp's introduction of the first transistor calculator just in time for the Tokyo Olympics - the nation's post-World War II return to the global stage. In 1997, the Osaka-based star gave the world the first commercial camera phone, inspiring Steve Jobs in California.

Now, it's hard to figure out a business in which Sharp can really excel. In 2012, when the company should've been celebrating its 100th anniversary, executives were releasing the company's worst financial results ever (nearly US$5 billion of losses). Despite a slew of cosmetic tweaks since then - raising equity from the public, selling off stakes in businesses and, in June 2013, naming a new president, Kozo Takahashi - the bleeding has not stopped. Sharp is forecasting a US$251 million loss for the 12 months ending March as its Aquos TVs struggle to compete against China, South Korea and Japanese rivals such as Sony.