- General
- April 17, 2019
- 4 minutes read
Intel Opts Out Of 5G Modem Market
Intel CEO Bob Swan image: Intel Intel has announced it’s exiting from the 5G smartphone modem business, cancelling 5G modem…
 |
| Intel CEO Bob Swan
image: Intel
|
Intel has announced it’s exiting from the 5G smartphone modem business, cancelling 5G modem products scheduled for launch in 2020. The company says it’ll still continue to invest in its 5G network infrastructure business and complete an assessment of opportunities for 4G and 5G modems in PCs, IoT devices, and other data-centric devices.
Intel recently said it expects its 5G modem chips to not appear in phones until 2020. A now complete pull-out from the market might affect its biggest customer, Apple, although the iPhone maker recently settled a long legal spat with chipmaker Qualcomm (Intel’s exit from the 5G modem market is a likely explanation for the sudden settlement). Both companies have reached a multiyear chipset supply deal and a six-year license agreement, including a two-year option to extend.
 |
| Asha R. Keddy, Intel corporate vice president and general manager of Next Generation and Standards
image: Intel
|
Intel will continue to meet current customer commitments for its existing 4G smartphone modem product line. “We are very excited about the opportunity in 5G and the ‘cloudification’ of the network, but in the smartphone modem business it has become apparent that there is no clear path to profitability and positive returns,” Intel CEO Bob Swan said in a press release.
“5G continues to be a strategic priority across Intel, and our team has developed a valuable portfolio of wireless products and intellectual property. We are assessing our options to realize the value we have created, including the opportunities in a wide variety of data-centric platforms and devices in a 5G world.” Swan said.
