On Thursday 18 January, the European Commission cleared the acquisition of NXP by Qualcomm, subject to full respect of the commitments proposed by the latter.
The American group Qualcomm is active on the market for semi-conductors supplying baseband chipsets for smart phones, allowing them to connect to cellular networks. The Dutch company NXP is present in the semi-conductor market for the automotive and mobile device sectors. It is one of the main suppliers of NFC (near-field communication) and secure element (SE) chips for smartphones. It is also the developer and owner of MIFARE, a technology used as a ticketing/fare collection platform in the field of transport. Both companies hold a significant amount of intellectual property concerning NFC chips.
The acquisition transaction was notified in April 2017 and the Commission opened an in-depth investigation in June. It had concerns that the operation would create a competition distortion in the market for semi-conductors for mobile devices, MIFARE technology and NFC technology (see EUROPE 11806). It was also concerned that the operation would affect the interoperability between Qualcomm baseband chipsets and NXP’s NFC and SE chips on the one hand and competitors’ products on the other, thereby hindering competition on the smartphone market.
As regards semi-conductors for mobile devices, the Commission’s investigation did not flag up any potential competition distortion.
As regards MIFARE technology, Qualcomm has undertaken to make the technology and trademarks accessible for an eight-year period, on terms that are at least as advantageous as those available today. Over this same period, the US company has also committed to ensure the same level of interoperability between its baseband chipsets and the NSC and SE products it has acquired from NXP, on the one hand, and the corresponding products of other companies on the other.
Finally, Qualcomm will acquire only certain NFC technology patents and NXP will transfer the others to an external company.
In light of the commitments made by Qualcomm, the Commission found that its acquisition of NXP was compatible with EU rules on mergers and acquisitions. (Original version in French by Lucas Tripoteau)