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今天，intel以12亿美金收购英飞凌的无线部门，重新杀回手机的基带处理器市场。当初，intel卖掉Xscale部门给Marvell,造就了一个华人创业公司的传奇。今天，intel吃着回头草，重新进入该市场，是不是预示着intel对自己当初判断的否定？
在无线通信市场，intel企图挑战传统力量的尝试还是失败了。虽败犹荣啊。WiMax败给了LTE,x86败给了ARM。
通过收购英飞凌的回归，intel还是掌握不少好牌。
1,进入WCDMA/HSPA的手机芯片市场，而且有着apple这样牛的客户。
2，同NOKIA合作的Meego是NOKIA+Intel的希望所在，间接为intel打开进入NOKIA基带芯片供货商的大门。
3, 进入LTE基带芯片市场，结合英飞凌和intel自己的wimax基带的技术，intel可以迅速在LTE系统站住脚。
4，通过现有客户为基础，慢慢导入x86到smartphone的市场。肯定从AP市场入手，BP可能还早吧。总之，intel不会和ARM决裂的。

(Reuters) – Intel will buy German chipmaker Infineon’s wireless unit for $1.4 billion, enabling the U.S. chipmaker to boost its presence in the smartphone market.

The cash transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2011 and the mobile unit will remain as a standalone business, the companies said in a statement on Monday.

Three people familiar with the matter had told Reuters on Friday that Intel and Infineon would likely reach an agreement on the business’s future within the next few days.

This is the second major deal for Intel within two weeks after the company announced its $7.7 billion offer for McAfee Inc on Aug 19, its largest acquisition, bolstering the appeal of its chips as it tries to expand further into the mobile market.

Intel’s Atom mobile chips took the low-cost, no-frills netbook market by storm but are rarely found in smartphones where other chipmakers dominate.

“Infineon would make Intel an instant heavyweight (in the mobile space) and buy them three, four years in R&D,” IDC analyst Flint Pulskamp has said.

But analysts also caution that while an acquisition such as Infineon’s mobile chip unit is a step in the right direction it will take time to produce results.

Meanwhile, rivals based on UK-listed ARM’s chip design — which is said to be more power-efficient than Intel’s offerings — continue to grab market share.

Infineon shares fell 1.4 percent to 4.54 euros by 0812 GMT in Frankfurt, widening losses they posted on Friday after Intel warned its third-quarter revenue would fall short of its own expectations due to weak consumer demand on personal computers.

“The positive effects of the (mobile chip) transaction have already been priced in. The sale has been discussed for months,” said German market analyst Heino Ruland of Ruland Research.

Intel shares closed largely flat at Friday’s market close in New York at $18.37.

SPECIAL DIVIDEND FOR INFINEON?

The deal will allow Infineon to focus on its core segments — automotive, industrial and chip card security.

“The sale of WLS is a strategic decision to enhance Infineon’s value,” said Chief Executive Peter Bauer said.

“We can now fully concentrate our resources toward strong growth in our core segments.”

Bauer, who took the helm in mid-2008, turned around the mobile chip unit after years of losses. It now generates around 30 percent of Infineon’s total revenue but it ranks No. 5 in the chipset industry, far behind sector giants Qualcomm, Texas Instruments and Broadcom.

Based in Neubiberg near Munich, Infineon supplies chips to top manufacturers such as Nokia, LG and Apple.

Asset sales may also open the door for a special dividend for Infineon shareholders, who have not seen a payout in years.

M&A MANIA

The deal comes amid a flurry of M&A activity worldwide as companies struggle to boost revenue in an anemic economic environment.

According to Thomson Reuters data, nearly $200 billion in mergers and acquisitions has been announced in August, already making it the third-best month so far this year in terms of money committed to deals.

The top bids include BHP Billiton’s $39 billion hostile offer for Canada’s Potash Corp and Vedanta Resources’ $9.6 billion stake purchase in Cairn India.

In addition, Hewlett Packard and Dell Inc are embroiled in a bidding war for 3PAR Inc with HP’s latest bid of $2 billion currently trumping Dell’s offer.

(Additional reporting by Noel Randewich; Editing by Mike Nesbit)

($1=.7861 euros)

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