Intel, Motorola invest in Clearwire
Wireless broadband solutions provider Clearwire announced a series of deals with Intel and Motorola designed to accelerate the development and deployment of mobile WiMAX equipment and services.
Intel Capital, the investment arm of semiconductor giant Intel, has invested $600 million cash as part of a $900 million private financing round. Motorola Ventures also participated in the financing round, although a Motorola spokesperson declined to comment on media reports that the company provided the other $300 million.
Meanwhile, Motorola bought Clear-wire subsidiary NextNet Wireless, which produces wireless broadband access systems. Upon the deal closing, Motorola will supply Clearwire’s wireless broadband equipment, while Intel will work to include WiMAX chipsets in future mobile computing platforms.
In addition to helping drive WiMAX-enabled devices, Intel hopes to sell WiMAX chipsets that will be used in Motorola’s infrastructure gear, Intel spokesman Kent Cook said.
“It’s a very symbiotic relationship,” he said. “Obviously, building out a national ecosystem is going to take some time, and we view this as an important step in that evolution.”
Although Intel’s deal was announced at the same time as the Motorola transaction, the deals were reached separately and were not contingent upon each other, Cook said.
