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World Qualcomm

For the past few months, there's been a will-they-won't-they trip the light fantastic toe going on betwixt Qualcomm and Broadcom. To be slightly more accurate, there's been a courting of Warner Bros. proportions betwixt the ii firms, if the role of Qualcomm were played by Penelope Pussycat and the part of Broadcom by Pepé Le Pew. At present, President Trump has announced he'south nixing the deal in a statement released by the White Firm on Monday.

"At that place is credible evidence that leads me to believe that Broadcom… through exercising command of Qualcomm… might take action that threatens to impair the national security of the United States," the statement read. "The proposed takeover of Qualcomm by the Purchaser is prohibited, and any substantially equivalent merger, acquisition, or takeover, whether effected straight or indirectly, is also prohibited."

The order goes on to say that the entire 15-member lath of directors that Broadcom had proposed for Qualcomm are now barred from standing for those positions, that all efforts by Broadcom to purchase Qualcomm are permanently barred from going into effect, and that Broadcom is to immediately terminate all of its efforts to secure ownership of Qualcomm now and forever.

It'due south the finish to a saga with a baroque number of twists and turns in recent months. To summarize a rather long story:

How the Hell Did We Become Hither?

Broadcom initially made a bid for Qualcomm terminal year, but Qualcomm wasn't interested. The smartphone SoC and cellular modem company has already been through the ringer with regulators of late, it's trying to become approving for its own purchase of NXP finalized (People's republic of china withal has to sign off), and it felt Broadcom'south own offer wasn't a skilful one. Broadcom played its ain game of carrot and stick, with an improved share toll offer, only too offered its own proposed lath of directors slate to shareholders in a motility intended to launch a hostile takeover.

Raspberry Pi 2

Broadcom hardware is ofttimes used in lower-end hardware, including diverse incarnations of the Raspberry Pi.

Meanwhile, Qualcomm increased the price it was offering for NXP hoping to scuttle the Broadcom bargain and told its shareholders they should vote confronting the merger. Certainly in that location was nothing to suggest any technical or It merit to a merger between the two corporations, particularly not when information technology came to handing more and more of the semiconductor industry over to fewer and fewer companies. Broadcom has previously competed against Qualcomm in multiple markets and some Broadcom customers, similar Western Digital, didn't desire to run into the visitor merge with Qualcomm based on how badly Broadcom treated its own partners. The FTC launched an investigation of Broadcom's actions in January.

Fast forward to just-before-now, when Qualcomm asked the Committee on Foreign Investments in the Usa, or CFIUS, to rule on whether the Broadcom merger represented a threat to national security. The committee released its findings vi days ago, reporting that "CFIUS has come to believe that Broadcom's successful hostile takeover endeavor of Qualcomm, including the related stock purchase, proxy contest for the election of six directors to Qualcomm's Lath as proposed and selected by Broadcom, Proposed Agreement and Programme of Merger, and whatsoever other potential merger between Broadcom and Qualcomm could pose a risk to the national security of the Usa."

The president concurs. And so endeth the proposed spousal relationship of Qualcomm and Broadcom, a brief shining dream that nobody seems to have wanted, no one seems to take idea would practise everyone much good, and which came with risks to national security that left everyone in the room common cold. Well, except Broadcom. Simply as of today, they don't count.