A week ago, a report surfaced from Israeli news outlet Calcalist claiming that Apple had reached an acquisition deal with the 3D sensor tech company PrimeSense. The purchase wasn't final, but the outlet seemed pretty confident it was close.
Today, Globes adds it weight to the story with its own report. Thepublication—who has a solid track record of providing accurate intel regarding high-level buyout talks—says the deal was completed Friday and will be announced next week...
Apple has reportedly purchased PrimeSense, an Israeli-based 3D sensor technology company, for $345 million. Rumors of the acquisition surfaced earlier this year, but Israeli news outlet Calcalist says the deal is now done, and Apple plans to announce it within the next few weeks.
PrimeSense is best known to most folks for its work with Microsoft, who used its technology, chips, and designs inside the first Kinect sensor for the Xbox 360. But the company sells its own 3D sensors and software for use in other markets such as as TV, mobile, retail, and robotics...
It was the summer of 2006. Facebook was just two years old, and strictly a college site, with some 8 or 9 million users. And the company's founder, Mark Zuckerberg, met with board members Jim Breyer and Peter Thiel to discuss Yahoo's $1 billion buyout offer.
As we all know, Zuckerberg ended up turning down the money, in what has become one of the most infamous moves in the last 10 years of tech. But the wunderkind recently found himself on the other side of the negotiating table, with even more money at stake...
In what turned out to be a rather interesting earnings call earlier today, Tim Cook talked about a wide range of topics including 'new product categories' and Apple's thinking behind the iPhone 5c. And he also touched on acquisitions.
In what seemed like a passing comment, Cook noted on today's call that Apple has completed a total of 15 strategic acquisitions during the course of fiscal 2013. That equates to roughly one every 3-4 weeks, a new high for the company...
Facebook announced today that it has acquired Onavo, an Israel-based startup. Initial reports claimed the sale price was in upwards of $200 million, but a more recent scoop from The New York Times claims it was closer to $120 million.
There are two parts to Onavo's business: one of consumer-facing apps that help optimize iOS and Android device performance, as well as minimize their data usage while surfing the web, and one of app analytics for mobile publishers...
Apple has apparently acquired another personal assistant company. It's called Cue, and it's the startup firm behind the personal assistant app for iPhone, of the same name, which shut down earlier this week.
The company, formerly known as Greplin, was a Y Combinator alumnus, announced to its users on Tuesday that the service would be shutting down, and that premium users would receive a prorated refund...
In February of 2011, Microsoft and Nokia announced a joint strategic partnership that would see Windows Phone become the principal platform strategy for Nokia's mobile devices. And the Finnish giant took quite a bit of heat for putting all of its eggs in Microsoft's basket.
But according to a new report, the company had a plan b: an Android device. Sources familiar with the project say that a team within Nokia had Android up and running on its Lumia handsets "well before" it began buyout negotiations with Microsoft for its mobile phone business...
Early Tuesday morning, Microsoft announced that it would be purchasing Nokia’s devices and services business. The transaction has been approved by the Boards of Directors for both companies, and is expected to close in Q1 of next year, pending regulatory approval.
As for the terms of the deal, Microsoft is paying EUR 3.79 billion to purchase substantially all of Nokia’s cell phone business, and EUR 1.65 billion to license the company's patents, for a total price of EUR 5.44 billion (or roughly $7.2 billion in US dollars) in cash...
It's official, Verizon has reached an agreement with Vodafone to buyout its 45% stake in Verizon Wireless for $130 billion. The news comes after several months of rumors and speculation, and a report from The Wall Street Journal this weekend.
The deal, which is expected to close by the beginning of next year, is significant for a few reasons. For one, it will put Verizon in full control of the largest wireless carrier in the US. And two, it will rank as one of the largest acquisitions in history...
A lot of watchers hit the panic button after the billionaire investor Carl Icahn announced taking a "large position" in Apple (think north of $1 billion), which more often than not acts as a Wall Street code-word for impending board/CEO changes and hostile takeovers. But these people needn't worry if an article by the New York Post is anything to go by.
As it turns out, Icahn may be simply looking to leverage his newly acquired influence to force Apple into buying Nuance Communications, whose technology powers Siri's speech recognition. Icahn just recently has conveniently increased his stake in Nuance and now owns 16.4 percent of the company.
Coincidentally or not, the investor said that both Apple and Nuance in his view are currently undervalued...
Verizon has reached an agreement with Vodafone to purchase its 45% stake in Verizon Wireless for roughly $130 billion, according to a new report from The Wall Street Journal. The outlet says that the deal isn't final yet, but it could be announced as soon as Monday.
The acquisition would be the second-largest ever of its kind, coming in about $40 billion behind another Vodafone deal—a $172 billion buyout of Mannesmann AG in 1999—and would cement Verizon's control of the biggest wireless carrier in the US by subscriber base...
Apple has once more dipped into Sweden for its latest startup acquisition. AlgoTrim's claim to fame is software which compresses images for quicker display on mobile displays and technology for efficient and battery-friendly image processing and editing - again, optimized for mobile devices. While neither Apple nor AlgoTrim will talk about the purchase, their reticence hasn't prevented speculation that the tiny firm was acquired to boost iOS imaging.
What does Apple want with a company which reportedly earned in 2012 just $3 million - pocket change for the Silicon Valley tech giant? First, consider who also wants AlgoTrim's software. Yep, Google's Android...