Semiconductor

GREENSBORO, N.C.—RF Micro Devices Inc. said it plans to sell its equity interest in Jazz Semiconductor for between $24 million and $27 million in cash. The company is divesting its interest in Jazz due to the pending merger of Jazz …

AUSTIN, Texas-Chipmaker Freescale Semiconductor Inc. said it signed a definitive merger agreement to be bought by a private-equity consortium led by The Blackstone Group. The transaction is valued at $17.6 billion. Other members of the consortium include The Carlyle Group, …

WASHINGTON–Freescale Semiconductor Inc. confirmed last week it is talking with parties relating to a possible transaction characterized by a New York Times story as a bidding war between two private equity firms to acquire the chipmaker for $16 billion. The …

SANTA ANA, Calif.—Powerwave Technologies Inc. reworked its $336 million acquisition agreement with Filtronic plc, paring the deal down to $185 million in cash along with 17.7 million in shares of Powerwave common stock. In June, the two companies struck an …

SANTA ANA, Calif.—Powerwave Technologies Inc. reworked its $336 million acquisition agreement with Filtronic plc, paring the deal down to $185 million in cash along with 17.7 million in shares of Powerwave common stock. In June, the two companies struck an …

METHUEN, Mass.-SiGe Semiconductor raised $19.5 million in an expansion round of financing led by venture-capital and private-equity firms, the company announced. SiGe Semiconductor makes radio frequency modules that are integrated into GSM-, GPRS- and EDGE-enabled mobile handsets, Bluetooth-enabled devices, GPS …

METHUEN, Mass.—SiGe Semiconductor raised $19.5 million in an expansion round of financing led by venture-capital and private-equity firms, the company announced. SiGe Semiconductor makes radio frequency modules that are integrated into GSM-, GPRS- and EDGE-enabled mobile handsets, Bluetooth-enabled devices, GPS …

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands-Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. launched a handset equipped with Unlicensed Mobile Access technology in Italy. Samsung’s SGH-P200 phone runs on the Nexperia chip from Royal Philips’ Philips Semiconductor division. Philips’ Nexperia offering uses the company’s low-power wireless local area …

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands—Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. launched a handset equipped with Unlicensed Mobile Access technology in Italy. Samsung’s SGH-P200 phone runs on the Nexperia chip from Royal Philips’ Philips Semiconductor division. Philips’ Nexperia offering uses the company’s low-power wireless local area …

The advent of contactless payment technology in mobile handsets ushers in big possibilities for credit-card companies, network operators, and handset and chip vendors-if all parties can agree on an equitable business model. For consumers, new technologies such as near field …

Look out, Texas Instruments Inc. and Infineon Technologies AG. Your closest competitor in EDGE baseband chips and W-CDMA RF transceivers, respectively-Philips Semiconductor-has a new, ambitious owner anxious to position its acquisition to eat your lunch. Or at least grow Philips …

AUSTIN, Texas-StarCore L.L.C. is closing up shop due to a lack of success in licensing its early digital signal processor family of chips. The company had hoped to challenge Texas Instruments Inc.’s leadership position in the DSP market. The shutdown …

AMSTERDAM—Royal Philips Electronics announced plans to sell a majority stake in its semiconductor business as the company transitions away from cyclical activities to focus on developing itself into a healthcare- and lifestyle-focused company. Philips is selling an 80.1-percent stake in …

AUSTIN, Texas—StarCore L.L.C. is closing up shop due to a lack of success in licensing its early digital signal processor family of chips. The company had hoped to eventually challenge Texas Instruments Inc.’s leadership position in the DSP market. The …

ROSEMONT, Ill.-Though much pent-up interest was focused on Motorola’s handset announcements, company execs talk about operations, supply chain, finances, product roadmap and whether Motorola could sustain its recent robust performance-in sum, both the “vision thing” and the nitty-gritty. CEO Ed …

SEOUL, South Korea— LG Electronics Co. Ltd. reported a net loss of $10.1 million on static sales of $6.1 billion in the second quarter on lackluster handset shipments and poor performance in its liquid crystal display joint venture with Philips …

Now that the dust has settled on news that Marvell Technology Group Ltd. will purchase Intel Corp.’s communications and application processor businesses for $600 million, many observers would love to know how Marvell plans to garner growth-never mind a simple …

AUSTIN, Texas—Fabless semiconductor company PulseWave RF Inc. said it raised $30 million in its third funding round. Oak Investment Partners led the round, and existing investors Austin Ventures, Bay Partners and Genesis Campus also participated. PulseWave said it plans to …

NETANYA, Israel-Intel Corp. has selected Siano Mobile Silicon’s multi-band, multi-standard receiver chipset for Intel’s mobile TV reference platform in its Xscale product line. The collaboration comes at a time when mobile TV component makers are matching up with chipset and …

The following list includes ratings changes and financial information for wireless companies announced this week by investment-banking and financial-services firms. Click here for wireless ratings from past weeks from RCR Wireless News.   Carrier Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services raised …

SAN DIEGO—Sequoia Communications, a fabless RF semiconductor company, said it raised $25 million in its series E round of financing. The round was led by BlueRun Ventures and included participation from Tallwood Venture Capital and Motorola Ventures. As part of …

NETANYA, Israel—Intel Corp. has selected Siano Mobile Silicon’s multi-band, multi-standard receiver chipset for Intel’s mobile TV reference platform in its Xscale product line. The collaboration comes at a time when mobile TV component makers are matching up with chipset and …

SAN DIEGO—Qualcomm Inc. boosted its financial guidance for the third fiscal quarter ending June 25 due to what the company said was strong demand for its chips for W-CDMA handsets and CDMA network gear. The San Diego-based chip vendor said …

In determining its path to a profitable future, Intel Corp. faces what other companies have faced before: the fundamental question of focus. Should Intel focus on core competencies, even if that’s in cooling markets, or should it endure a slide …

SAN JOSE, Calif.-A new report from the Semiconductor Industry Association predicts semiconductor sales worldwide will grow 9.8 percent to nearly $250 billion this year, driven largely by the cell-phone market. The new forecast is an increase from November forecasts that …