Qualcomm to acquire NXP Semiconductors (who?) in $47bn deal

Mobile chipmaker Qualcomm has announced that it will acquire NXP Semiconductors in a deal valued at a massive US$47-billion.

Most of our tech-savvy readers know that Qualcomm is the company behind the all-conquering Snapdragon smartphone processors. But what about NXP?

“NXP is a leader in high-performance, mixed-signal semiconductor electronics, with innovative products and solutions and leadership positions in automotive, broad-based microcontrollers, secure identification, network processing and RF power,” the mobile chipmaker wrote in a statement.

“…NXP also has leading positions in automotive infotainment, networking and safety systems, with solutions designed into 14 of the top 15 infotainment customers in 2016,” Qualcomm added.

The Qualcomm decision to buy NXP means that the mobile colossus now grabs a huge slice of the automotive pie

In other words, this move will see Qualcomm gain a big presence in the automotive industry and strengthen their position in the IoT ecosystem.

However, it’s also worth noting that NXP is one of the companies behind the near-field communications (NFC) technology, supplying chips to a host of firms around the world. And with mobile payments all the rage these days, expect demand to continue on an upward curve.

“The combined company is expected to have annual revenues of more than $30 billion, serviceable addressable markets of $138 billion in 2020 and leadership positions across mobile, automotive, IoT, security, RF and networking,” Qualcomm explained.