Samsung’s beefing up its patent pile with the acquisition of British chip firm CSR’s mobile connectivity and location technology business.
It’s paying $310 million for the business, netting it a series of Bluetooth, Wifi and GPS patents used in mobile devices. They should boost Samsung in its mobile chipmaking business, which sells chips to Apple, amongst other vendors.
“The value achieved for our handset operations reflects the market leadership of our handset connectivity and location technology created through the talent, expertise and dedication of our people,” says Joep van Beurden, CEO of CSR.
“I believe that under Samsung’s ownership the handset operations will be in a better position to prosper in the global handset market.”
As part of the deal, due to be finalized by the end of this year, more than 300 CSR employees will transfer to Samsung.
Samsung gets a world-wide, perpetual, royalty-free, non-exclusive license of CSR’s intellectual property rights used in its handset connectivity and location products. It also gets 21 patents, which will be licensed back to CSR in perpetuity, royalty-free.
CSR will now stop investing in its handset connectivity and handset location technology – other than its indoors location platform.
Instead, it will focus on voice and music, automotive infotainment, indoors location, imaging and Bluetooth.
