Intel has transferred over 5,000 patents to the intellectual property licensing group IPValue.
The deal is apparently set to include inventions relating to microprocessors, application processors, logic devices, computing systems, memory and storage, connectivity and communications, packaging, and semiconductor architecture, design and manufacturing.
In a press release (opens in new tab), IPValue said it will license the new portfolio to both existing and new licensees.
New Intel strategy
Intel’s decision to license its portfolios via IPValue is likely driven by the need to raise additional cash and establish new revenue streams off the back of an underwhelming quarter.
The chip giant’s revenue for Q2 ($15.3 billion) was down 15% compared to its own guidance, while its 29 cents earnings per share were 41% lower compared to its own estimates.
Intel CEO Pat Gelsigner attributed weak performance to a “difficult macroeconomic climate”, pointing the finger at widely-recognized issues such as “inflation, higher interest rates, and the war in Ukraine.”
This is not the first big intellectual property acquisition that IPValue has made. The firm previously acquired the semiconductor portfolios of a wide variety of firms, including Cypress Semiconductor, Elpida, UMC and Seiko Epson.
The assets will be held in a recently formed separate company within IPValue, called Tahoe Research Limited.
In this instance, it’s likely the patents will relate to Intel’s less advanced hardware, rather than the tech that powers some of the best business laptops and business computers.
Intel has been active in terms of converting its backlog of assets to cash in recent years. The chip giant offloaded its NAND flash and SSD business units to South Korea’s hardware firm SK Hynix in a $9 billion deal in 2020 and it also sold off its smartphone modem business to Apple in 2019.
There is plenty for Intel investors to be optimistic about, however. The US Congress has approved the Chips ACT, which could provide up to $52 billion in funding for domestic semiconductor manufacturing, with Intel a very likely beneficiary.
- Interested in trying out some of Intel’s hardware? Check out our guide to the best servers
