Wheelings & Dealings: Sony Aims for IoT, Wearables with Altair Acquisition

By

It’s been an interesting ride for Sony over the last few years. The company that once dominated the television industry had to rethink its commitment to HDTVs a few years ago when competitors in Korea—namely Samsung and LG—became the new go-to brands for HDTV buyers. On the gaming front, Sony went from trailing behind Microsoft to being the clear frontrunner in the console gaming space as the PlayStation 4 managed to wow the crowds. Then there’s Sony’s mobile business.

Now that Chinese brands make up 40 percent of smartphone shipments, it’s harder than ever for companies like Sony and LG to compete in a market that is notoriously tough for anyone but Apple and Samsung. And yet, just like with HDTVs, Sony seems unwilling to give up as evidenced buy its newly announced acquisition of Altair Semiconductor for the purchase price of US$212 million (approximately 25 billion yen). The acquisition is expected to complete in early February.

Based in Israel, Altair develops and sells products focused on LTE technology and owns valuable modem chip technology and related software for LTE. In particular, the company’s modem chips stand out in the industry for their low power consumption, high performance and competitive cost. Undoubtedly, the benefits of these chips will be used to enhance Sony’s lineup of smartphones and tablets that have been well received critically, but are largely ignored by consumers.

However, according to Sony’s official statement on the acquisition, buying Altair is about a lot more than traditional cellular devices. On the contrary, it’s about the future of the mobile space.

“LTE is already widely used in data communication for mobile phones, and is also expected to play a pivotal role in the interconnection of the Internet of Things (IoT),” reads Sony’s release. “Going forward, more and more ‘things’ are expected to be equipped with cellular chipsets, realizing a connected environment in which ‘things’ can reliably and securely access network services that leverage the power of cloud computing.”

In other words, by acquiring Altair, Sony wants to move forward with research and development on new sensing technology. In particular, the company plans to combine its own sensing technologies—namely its Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) and image sensors—with Altair’s modem chip technology.

The end goal for Sony is to “develop a new breed of cellular-connected, sensing component devices.” Mincing no words, the company has specifically named IoT devices and wearables as ideal use cases for its new LTE solutions.

At this week’s ITEXPO Business Technology conference in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. the topic of IoT is a hot one.  Gary Audin, Senior Technology Analyst & EDUcast Host, Telecom Reseller will moderate a session  Wed. Jan. 27 at 2:30pm titled “State of IoT” that will explore trends  in wireless technologies and discuss ways cell providers can keep up. 




Edited by Stefania Viscusi
Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. [Free eNews Subscription]

Contributing Writer

SHARE THIS ARTICLE
Related Articles

How to Protect Your Website From LDAP Injection Attacks

By: Contributing Writer    3/12/2024

Prevent LDAP injection attacks with regular testing, limiting access privileges, sanitizing user input, and applying the proper encoding functions.

Read More

Azure Cost Optimization: 5 Things You Can Do to Save on Azure

By: Contributing Writer    3/7/2024

Azure cost optimization is the process of managing and reducing the overall cost of using Azure. It involves understanding the resources you're using,…

Read More

Massive Meta Apps and Services Outage Impacts Users Worldwide

By: Alex Passett    3/5/2024

Meta's suite of apps and services are experiencing major global outages on Super Tuesday 2024.

Read More

The Role of Technology in Shaping the Future of Affiliate Marketing

By: Contributing Writer    3/5/2024

In the current rapidly growing digital world, affiliate marketing is still one of the most effective ways for businesses to increase their visibility …

Read More

The Steps You Can Take To Improve Customer Service For Your Business

By: Contributing Writer    3/5/2024

When you're in a competitive market, providing exceptional customer service is crucial for the success and growth of your business. Good customer serv…

Read More