Apple Inc said on Thursday it would buy the majority of Intel Corp’s smartphone modem business for $1 billion, months after the chipmaker announced plans to exit the 5G modem chip business.
Apple will hold over 17,000 wireless technology patents and take on about 2,200 Intel employees after the completion of the deal, the iPhone maker said.
Intel had positioned itself as the sole source of iPhone modem chips over the past year after Apple got into a prolonged legal fight with previous supplier Qualcomm Inc.
Apple reached a surprise settlement with Qualcomm in April that called for the company to once again use Qualcomm’s modem chips, leading to Intel’s decision to quit the business.
The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2019, the companies said.
