Neil Hughes
The Intel Foundation will sell its 4.9 percent stake in Imagination Technologies, the company whose PowerVR graphics processors are a key component of Apple's iPhone and iPad, it was announced on Thursday.
Once the sale is complete, the Intel Foundation and Intel Capital will no longer hold any shares in Imagination Technologies, according to J.P. Morgan Securities. Intel had been a licensee of the British chipmaker's 3D technology.
Apple, however, remains a shareholder and a licensee of Imagination Technologies, having renewed its agreement with the company a year ago. Terms of that deal were not announced, but Imagination did say in February 2014 that the agreement spans multiple years and covers a variety of uses.
In late 2008, Apple bought a 3.6 percent stake in Imagination Technologies, and has since upped its share to nearly 10 percent. The company's powerful PowerVR Series 6 chips have powered every Apple "iDevice" since the third-generation iPhone 3GS.
The latest-generation A8 processor found in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus boasts the PowerVR GX6450, a six-core graphics processor that boasts a performance improvement of up to 84 times greater than the first iPhone released in 2007. And the A8X chip found in the iPad Air 2 features even greater graphics performance, trouncing competing tablets on the market today.
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31 Comments
What could have happened: Tim: Yeah, we want to buy Imagination Technologies. Brian: Oh, really? Tim: Yep. Found some spare change in Jony's sofa, so we're going to buy them. That means you need to sell your stake. Brian: What makes you think we're going to do that? Tim: See this MacBook? (pulls out MacBook) Brian: Yes, looks like that new MacBook Air you've been working on. Tim: It doesn't have an Intel chip in it anywhere. Brian: ...oh. Tim: We'll give you an extra two years of portable business and let you keep the Mac Pro and high end iMac business for another seven if you sell your stake. Brian: That's extortion. Tim: No, it's negotiation. Just think; as PC shipments continue to slide, wouldn't it be just awful if your expensive high end chip business lost one of its largest customers? Brian: I see your point. We'll sell it ASAP. Or something like that.
10% + 4.9% = 14.9% if Apple bought Intel's shares. Would 14.9% make Apple the largest shareholder?
[quote name="TheWhiteFalcon" url="/t/184775/intel-to-sell-remaining-stake-in-apple-partner-mobile-gpu-maker-imagination-technologies#post_2675124"] What could have happened: Tim: Yeah, we want to buy Imagination Technologies. Brian: Oh, really? Tim: Yep. Found some spare change in Jony's sofa, so we're going to buy them. That means you need to sell your stake. Brian: What makes you think we're going to do that? Tim: See this MacBook? (pulls out MacBook) Brian: Yes, looks like that new MacBook Air you've been working on. Tim: It doesn't have an Intel chip in it anywhere. Brian: ...oh. Tim: We'll give you an extra two years of portable business and let you keep the Mac Pro and high end iMac business for another seven if you sell your stake. Brian: That's extortion. Tim: No, it's negotiation. Just think; as PC shipments continue to slide, wouldn't it be just awful if your expensive high end chip business lost one of its largest customers? Brian: I see your point. We'll sell it ASAP. Or something like that.[/quote] Why would Apple be forcing Intel to sell their 4.9% stake in Imagination Technologies? Is Apple wanting those shares? Apple already has a bigger stake than Intel anyway. Perhaps Intel invested in them long ago... but haven't seen the result they are looking for. So maybe they were looking to get out.
Not a big deal. Intel Foundation is a non-profit charity. Any money they make can only go into further charitable contributions and can't go back to directly benefit Intel.
How did the Foundation get the shares in the first place? I'm guessing that Intel contributed them (for a tax write-off) because they wanted to be at an arms length from Imagination.
This is definitely a company Apple should consider buying.