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KB3001
And the closer you get to the final customer the higher are the profit margins. ...
Luis Sanchez
Looks like CSR is much broader than I thought. I only knew them through their ...
CSR guts Zoran DTV chip business in re-org
Dylan McGrath
12/12/2011 12:45 PM EST
SAN FRANCISCO—Chip maker CSR plc said Monday (Dec. 12) it would discontinue investment in the digital TV and silicon tuner product lines it recently acquired when it bought Zoran Corp. and lay off about 800 employees by the end of the second quarter of 2012.
CSR (Cambridge, U.K.) said it expects to save about $60 million per year as a result of these and other changes. The company expects to take a charge of about $10 million for restructuring by the end of the second quarter of 2012.
CSR said it is making the cuts to sharpen the company's focus on areas where it has leadership positions and the ability to deliver differentiated platforms and products. The company said it would continue to support and deliver products to customers in these areas, and will continue to develop connectivity, other home entertainment products and peripherals related to the DTV market.
Many observers expected CSR to cut portions of Zoran, the image processing chip specialist it acquired earlier this year for about $484 million. CSR executives have articulated a vision for the company to become a diversified platform provider and avoid commoditization at all costs.
"We continue to take a disciplined approach to capital allocation and cost control," said Joep van Beurden, CEO of CSR, in a statement. Beurden said CSR would focus investments in areas where the company has a strong position, including the areas of voice and music, automotive infotainment, cameras, document imaging, gaming and Bluetooth low energy devices.
“We will also continue to invest in a range of products for attractive growth markets including handsets and computer peripherals," Beurden said.
CSR said it expects to have about 2,400 employees at the end of the second quarter of 2012, down from about 3,200 employees at the end of September. The company said it continues to expect fourth quarter revenue to be between $230 million and $250 million.
CSR (Cambridge, U.K.) said it expects to save about $60 million per year as a result of these and other changes. The company expects to take a charge of about $10 million for restructuring by the end of the second quarter of 2012.
CSR said it is making the cuts to sharpen the company's focus on areas where it has leadership positions and the ability to deliver differentiated platforms and products. The company said it would continue to support and deliver products to customers in these areas, and will continue to develop connectivity, other home entertainment products and peripherals related to the DTV market.
Many observers expected CSR to cut portions of Zoran, the image processing chip specialist it acquired earlier this year for about $484 million. CSR executives have articulated a vision for the company to become a diversified platform provider and avoid commoditization at all costs.
"We continue to take a disciplined approach to capital allocation and cost control," said Joep van Beurden, CEO of CSR, in a statement. Beurden said CSR would focus investments in areas where the company has a strong position, including the areas of voice and music, automotive infotainment, cameras, document imaging, gaming and Bluetooth low energy devices.
“We will also continue to invest in a range of products for attractive growth markets including handsets and computer peripherals," Beurden said.
CSR said it expects to have about 2,400 employees at the end of the second quarter of 2012, down from about 3,200 employees at the end of September. The company said it continues to expect fourth quarter revenue to be between $230 million and $250 million.
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Jared Mahonrimoriacamer
12/12/2011 5:53 PM EST
isn't that like buying a car, taking off the tires and throwing the rest of the car away?
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StevePxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
12/12/2011 6:16 PM EST
Not really.
It's more like buying a truck and removing the camper shell you never use.
CSR didn't buy MicroTune(silicon tuners), they bought Zoran, that had purchased MicroTune the previous year.
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GREAT-Terry
12/12/2011 11:28 PM EST
What else can Zoran have after taking away the DTV or video processing stuff? I have no idea on what else does Zoran make. So, what benefit can CSR get from such acquisition?
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Frank Eory
12/13/2011 9:34 AM EST
Quitting the DTV and silicon tuner business is not the same thing as abandoning video processing. Some of the other CSR products could still use that IP.
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StevePxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
12/13/2011 1:04 PM EST
CSR get patents, IP and design teams to start with.
Zoran had lots of video processing that isn't TV or Tuner specific like "DVD Multimedia Processors". Also, while Cisco discontinued the "Flip" video camera using Zoran COACH chips the technology should be a drop in for a mobile phone platform.
There are also things like sourcing agreements that can have a big impact.
Perhaps Zoran had advantageous wafer pricing/tech contracts.
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Luis Sanchez
12/13/2011 2:28 PM EST
Looks like CSR is much broader than I thought. I only knew them through their Bluetooth chips. Their chips and tools are nice. I think business wise is a smart decision to focus. It’s good to have a broad portfolio but not too broad. However, is always sat to know that people are getting laid-off. Be able to develop a company is a gigantic and praise worthy venture.
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KB3001
12/13/2011 4:07 PM EST
And the closer you get to the final customer the higher are the profit margins. concentrating on more front-end products makes sense.
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