Apple announced today that they have acquired the majority of Intel’s smartphone modem business for $1 billion. Adding Intel’s patents to Apple’s existing ones will give them over 17,000 wireless technology patents related to everything from cellular standards to modem architecture and modem operation.
Acquiring Intel’s modem business will give Apple access to the technology needed to develop 5G-capable smartphones, a hot topic this year as well as affording Intel the opportunity to focus more of their efforts on 5G as well. “This agreement enables us to focus on developing technology for the 5G network while retaining critical intellectual property and modem technology that our team has created,” said Intel CEO Bob Swan. “…We’re looking forward to putting our full effort into 5G where it most closely aligns with the needs of our global customer base, including network operators, telecommunications equipment manufacturers and cloud service providers.”