Qualcomm scraps $45 bn NXP deal after no response from China
San Francisco, July 26: San Diego-based chipmaker Qualcomm has walked away from buying Dutch firm NXP Semiconductors for $45 billion after the Chinese regulators did not grant last-minute approval to the deal.
The two companies entered into a deal in October 2016, with the deadline to close the deal extended several times as the companies waited for China to approve or deny the merger.
Eight of the nine countries where Qualcomm has businesses had approved the deal.
With no answer from China's Ministry of Commerce as the deadline passed (it was 9.30 a.m. Indian time on Thursday), it was clear that the merger was officially dead.
"We intend to terminate our purchase agreement to acquire NXP when the agreement expires at the end of the day today, pending any new material developments," Steve Mollenkopf, CEO of Qualcomm Incorporated, said in a statement late on Wednesday.
"In addition, upon termination of the agreement, we intend to pursue a stock repurchase program of up to $30 billion to deliver significant value to our stockholders," he added as the company announced results for its fiscal third quarter that ended June 24.
However, Qualcomm will shell out a break-up fee of $2 billion to NXP Semiconductors that makes automotive, security and Internet of Things (IoT) solutions.
The chip-maker reported revenue of $5.6 billion, saying the revenue in the third quarter grew four per cent year-on-year. The net income was $1.2 billion.
"We reported results significantly above our prior expectations for our fiscal third quarter, driven by solid execution across the company, including very strong results in our licensing business," Mollenkopf said.
The company also announced that it does not expect to supply wireless chips for upcoming iPhones.
Qualcomm is a major supplier of 4G chips for smartphones.
According to CNET, Apple has been using Intel 4G chips for some iPhone models and Qualcomm chips for others.
"We believe Apple intends to solely use our competitor's modems rather than our modems in its next iPhone release," Qualcomm Financial Chief George Davis was quoted as saying.
Apple and Qualcomm have been fighting over patents since the beginning of 2017.
"Qualcomm didn't say which company will supply modems for the next iPhone, but it is believed to be Intel," the report added.
With iPhone 7 and 7 Plus launch in 2016, Apple began using Intel chips in some variants of iPhones.
However, some media reports said Apple has reportedly conveyed a message to Intel, saying it will not be using the chip-maker's 5G modems for 2020 iPhone models.
Earlier reports suggested that Apple was turning to Taiwanese mobile chipset maker MediaTek for its communications components and that the California-headquartered tech giant was looking to move away from using Intel processors altogether by 2020.
Apple started using Intel components in modern iPhones as it wanted to reduce its dependence on chips from Qualcomm, with which it got entangled in a long legal battle.
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RG Kar protests: SC orders SIT probe into custodial torture case, weekly reports before HC
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Monday ordered an SIT investigation into the alleged torture of a woman in police custody following her arrest over protests against the rape and murder of a doctor at R G Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata.
Observing not everything could be transferred to the CBI, a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan modified the Calcutta High Court order ordering a CBI probe and said senior IPS officers of the state need to be entrusted with the investigation.
The top court said the SIT, which will comprise officers, whose names were submitted by the state, shall submit its report on the progress of the investigation on weekly basis to the high court.
The Calcutta High Court chief justice was directed to constitute a special bench before which the SIT would submit its report besides seeking further investigation.
On November 11, the top court stayed the October 8 order of the high court directing a CBI probe while asking the state government to submit a list of seven IPS officers, including five women, who would comprise a fresh SIT to probe the custodial torture case.
The order was passed on an appeal filed by the West Bengal government that stated the high court had erroneously ordered a CBI probe whereas the state police was capable of the investigation.
On November 6, a division bench of the high court upheld a single-judge order directing a CBI probe into the allegations levelled by the woman.
The division bench said the order of the single judge to conduct an independent investigation could not be faulted and did not call for any interference.
Initially, two women petitioners, moved the single-judge bench alleging physical torture while in police custody. The court noted the report of a jail doctor who found signs of hematoma (a solid swelling of clotted blood within tissue) on the legs of one of them.
The complainants, Rebeka Khatun Molla and Rama Das, were arrested on September 7 and remained in the custody of Falta Police Station in the Diamond Harbour police district till their judicial remand ordered by the Diamond Harbour court the next day, the high court noted.
The division bench further noted while the report of the medical officer of Diamond Harbour sub-correctional home states hematoma on both of Das' legs, the examining doctor of Diamond Harbour Medical College and Hospital recorded no external injury.
Considering the subsequent medical reports of the petitioner, the high court bench said it was of the prima facie view that the trauma occurred on her on September 7 in police custody.
It observed the discrepancies were serious and would warrant an independent agency to conduct the investigation.
