The pressure on Qualcomm’s management came to a head in July 2015, when its Q3 results showed revenues were down by $1.1billion over the previous quarter and 14% down on Q3 2014. A New York hedge fund pushed Qualcomm's board to ‘do something about it’.
The review, instigated in part, by investors, addressed the benefits and challenges of the existing structure and considered a range of alternatives for what the company termed ‘enhancing stockholder value’.
“The strategic benefits of the current structure will best fuel Qualcomm’s growth as we move through the upcoming technology transitions and extend our technologies into new user experiences, services and industries,” said Steve Mollenkopf, pictured, CEO. “The strategic benefits and synergies of our model are not replicable through alternative structures. We therefore believe the current structure is the best way to execute on our strategy to build on our position in the ecosystem and deliver enhanced performance and returns. Looking ahead, we have a focused plan in place that we believe will drive growth and we are off to a good start implementing that plan.”
“Over the years, as the landscape has evolved, we have periodically analysed our business structure to test whether we are best positioned to drive stockholder value, and we have made fundamental changes to enhance value, when appropriate,” said Qualcomm chairman Paul Jacobs. “Given the dynamic industry and competitive environment, we decided to take a fresh look at our structure to ensure we were doing everything possible to enhance the value of the company and position ourselves for long-term success.”
