Curtains drawn on ST-Ericsson
1 min read
Long time readers of <i>Private Eye</i> will be familiar with the poetry of EJ Thribb, whose odes – which started with the words 'So. Farewell then' – addressed the passing of celebrities.
Those words can be used today when it comes to ST Ericsson; it is no more. In a formal announcement, the company said it has transferred 1800 employees to Ericsson and 1000 to STMicroelectronics, while closing deals with third parties that bring in a bit of cash for technologies that weren't required by the two partners.
When ST and NXP sat down a few years ago and decided to pool their resources, they did so for a reason: individually, they couldn't make the necessary investments. Shortly after Rick Clemmer took over at NXP, that deal was dead; ST bought out NXP's share for $92million and joined forces with Ericsson. And that joint venture never gained momentum, losing spectacular amounts of cash from the off.
So the wheel turns full circle. ST's wireless interests are now back in house, as are Ericsson's. The only change is that both have lost a lot of cash.
