Sony acquires Israeli Altair Semiconductor

The purchase price is USD 212 million, and Sony expects to complete the acquisition in early February, 2016. Altair, an Israel-based company, owns modem chip technology and related software for LTE (Long Term Evolution), a 4G cellular standard for mobile devices. Altair develops and sells products focused on LTE technology, and its modem chips stand out for their low power consumption, high performance and competitive cost. With the acquisition of Altair, Sony aims to not only expand Altair’s existing business, but also to move forward with research on and development of new sensing technologies. By combining Sony’s sensing technologies – such as GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) and image sensors – with Altair’s modem chip technology, and by further evolving both, Sony will aim to develop a new breed of cellular-connected, sensing component devices. With the markets for wearable and IoT devices expected to continue to expand, Sony gearing up to be able to deliver component devices that feature both sensing and communication capabilities, as well as new LTE solutions that leverage the strengths of these component devices.