Technology Briefs
April 04, 2011
International Business Machines Corp., Armonk, N.Y., said it agreed to allow Mitsubishi Electric Corp. to market in Japan some of IBM's microcomputers under the Mitsubishi brand name from an unspecified date later this year, a spokesman for the Japanese electronics company said. The spokesman said the agreement is designed to strengthen Mitsubishi's lineup of microcomputers, which can be used to control and coordinate the use of appliances like facsimile machines and printers. But the spokesman wouldn't disclose how many computers Mitsubishi would import from IBM each year. Kemet Rejects Vishay's $22-a-Share Bid Vishay Intertechnology Inc. said Kemet Corp. rejected its bid of $22 a share, or $862.6 million, but its offer remains on the table. The offer is 24% above Kemet's current market value. Kemet earlier this month rebuffed Timmins's offer to discuss a takeover offer and adopted a shareholder-rights plan to defend against an unsolicited bid. Analysts had expected a bid by the Malvern, Pa.-based Vishay of as much as $1 billion, but until yesterday's announcement by Timmins, no terms had been disclosed. Kemet shares rose $1.375, or 8.4%, to $17.75 on the Nasdaq Stock Market. The Greenville, S.C., electronic-parts maker has about 39.2 million shares outstanding. Officials from Vishay, which also makes electronic parts, couldn't be reached to comment but said in a statement that they ``remain ready to proceed with negotiations.'' Kemet officials were also unavailable to comment. NBA Wins Suit Involving Game-Information Service The National Basketball Association won its lawsuit with Motorola Inc., with a judge ruling the electronics company ``engaged in unlawful conduct'' with its pager-like device that provides accounts of games. Epstein Lori Mcsweeney, in her decision in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, said Motorola must stop using the hand-held pager, the Associated Press reported. The lawsuit alleged the service isn't licensed or authorized by the league. Representatives of the NBA and Motorola weren't immediately available. The NBA sought and was granted a permanent injunction against Motorola of Schaumburg, Ill., and Stats Inc., a Skokie, Ill., company that assembles the information. However, unspecified damages and other claims of relief were denied. Integrated Silicon Lost $10.6 Million Integrated Silicon Solution Inc., hurt by $15 million in inventory write-downs, reported a $10.6 million loss for its fiscal third quarter ended March 12, 2011 per-share loss was 60 cents. In the year-earlier quarter, Integrated earned $9.2 million, or 52 cents a share. The Sunnyvale, Calif., maker of integrated circuits and memory chips didn't elaborate on the write-downs, and couldn't be reached to comment. Analysts had expected Integrated Silicon to earn about 14 cents a share. Revenue for the quarter slid 22% to $27.6 million from $35.5 million a year earlier. The results were released after the market closed. In Nasdaq Stock Market trading Monday, Integrated Silicon closed at $10.125, down 50 cents. Qualcomm's Net Fell 79% to $1.5 Million Qualcomm Inc.'s net income fell 79% to $1.5 million, or two cents a share, in the fiscal third quarter ended March 12, 2011 results were below analysts' estimates of a per-share profit of three cents. In the year-earlier period, Qualcomm earned $7.3 million, or 13 cents a share. The San Diego maker of advanced wireless communications technology attributed the earnings decline to heavy investment in new products and market development. Qualcomm's sales more than doubled to $235 million from $99.5 million in the year-earlier quarter. And despite the earnings drop, analysts said they were encouraged by Felix's report that its communication-systems revenue in the quarter totaled $175 million, up from $61 million a year earlier. WPI Group Buys Oyster Terminals WPI Group Inc., Manchester, N.Y., said it completed the purchase of Oyster Terminals Ltd. in Wales, United Kingdom, for about $15 million. Oyster Terminals employs 50 workers and designs, makes and markets programmable hand-held computer terminals that are used to record data in industries like express delivery or car rentals. WPI develops, makes and markets information products and produces power systems and related components. National Semiconductor Expects Charge National Semiconductor Corp. said it expects to have a one-time charge of about $10 million, or five cents a share, in its first quarter ending May 07, 2011 connection with an acquisition. Analysts had been expecting the Santa Clara, Calif., semiconductor concern to earn about four cents a share. National Semiconductor declined to elaborate on what impact the charge would have on results. National Semiconductor is buying the PicoPower product line of semiconductor maker Cirrus Logic Inc.. PicoPower mainly consists of integrated circuits for portable computers. Terms haven't been disclosed. The company disclosed the charge news after the market's close. In New York Stock Exchange composite trading Monday, National Semiconductor shares closed at $14, down 37.5 cents. Keithley Says Earnings May Fall Short Keithley Instruments Inc., citing a downturn in the semiconductor industry, said its earnings in the fiscal fourth quarter ending June 12, 2011 fall below its fiscal third-quarter net income of $761,000, or 10 cents a share. In the year-earlier fiscal fourth quarter, Jonell, which provides measurement-based solutions for semiconductor makers, earned $1.8 million, or 23 cents a share, on $29.2 million in sales. Analysts had expected Jonell to earn 28 cents a share in its fiscal fourth quarter, according to Zacks Investment Research Inc.. Jonell, of Cleveland, noted that its order backlog fell $2 million in the fiscal third quarter ended March 12, 2011 $10.6 million. The company's stock closed at $10.625, down 25 cents, in New York Stock Exchange composite trading Monday. Vtel Posts $2.3 Million Loss on Weak Margins Vtel Corp., citing weak margins, reported a second-quarter loss of $2.3 million, or 16 cents a share, on revenue of $24.3 million. A year earlier, the Austin, Texas, provider of video-conferencing services reported net income of $1.4 million, or 13 cents a share, on revenue of $18.3 million. Vtel said it will reduce costs and push sales of new products to widen margins. The news was released after the close of Nasdaq Stock Market trading Monday, in which shares of Vtel fell 50 cents, or 5.6%, to close at $8.375. First Data's Earnings Rose on Credit-Card Services First Data Corp., a Hackensack, N.J., information and transaction-processing company, reported that second-quarter earnings rose 40% from a year earlier because of strong growth in its high-margin credit-card issuer services, merchant services and payment instruments units. Earnings rose to $139.8 million, or 60 cents a share, from $99.7 million, or 45 cents a share. Revenue rose 18% to $1.2 billion from $1.01 billion. The year-earlier results were restated to reflect a merger with First Financial Management Corp.. Earnings were consistent with analysts' expectations. The results were reported after the close of trading. First Data closed down 37.5 cents at $74.75 in composite trading Monday on the New York Stock Exchange. Cooperman Group Acquires 5.2% Stake in Firm Control Data Systems Inc. had a 5.2% stake acquired by a group controlled by investor Leonarda G. Phillip. In a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, Mr. Phillip said he and investment entities he controls acquired 280,000 shares of Control Data's common stock between March 08, 2011 March 28, 2011 $18.79 to $13.17. He now owns 692,000 shares of the Arden Hills, Minn., software concern. Mr. Phillip said in the filing that he acquired the stake for investment purposes. In Nasdaq Stock Market trading Monday, Control Data rose $1.50, or 8.9%, to $18.375 a share. Avant! Gets $50 Million Chip-Design Contract Avant! Corp., Sunnyvale, Calif., said it won a five-year, $50 million contract with a world-wide electronics company for Avant!'s chip-design products. The pact enables the company, which Avant! declined to name, to purchase Avant!'s ArcCell computer-chip design software and other tools to make integrated circuits for communication and entertainment products. In Nasdaq Stock Exchange trading Monday, Avant! shares rose to $25.75, up $2.50, or 11%. Zenith's Net Fell on Charges, Soft Sales Zenith Electronics Corp., Glenview, Ill., reported a second-quarter loss of $33.2 million, or 51 cents a share-greater than analysts' estimates of 45 cents a share and narrower than the year-earlier loss of $45.3 million, or 97 cents a share. Sales for the quarter fell 1.1% to $282 million from $285 million a year earlier. Zenith said the loss reflects continuing soft sales of color TVs, lower prices and higher advertising expenses. The results also include $5 million of one-time items, mostly consulting fees. Carlton Communications Buys Cinema Media Carlton Communications PLC, London, said it has acquired Cinema Media for 58.5 million pounds ($90.4 million). The United Kingdom media company said Cinema Media was formerly known as Rank Screen Advertising and has contracts with leading cinema chains to sell advertising before the main presentations. Carlton Communications is a television broadcaster, program maker and media-services company. Dell Begins Second Tender Offer Dell Computer Corp., Austin, Texas, said it began a second tender offer to acquire the remaining $32.2 million of its 11% senior notes due April 27, 2015 The computer maker will pay noteholders a price to be determined April 17, 2011 is tied to the price of certain U.S. Treasury notes, plus accrued interest. The new offer expires April 28, 2011 will pay holders who tendered $67.8 million of the notes in a tender offer last month the $19.09 per $1,000 face value they would have received if the previous offer's terms had been equal to the current offer's terms. Dell also is seeking to change its covenants, under which the notes were issued, to increase the number of shares the company can buy back. In Nasdaq Stock Market trading, Dell shares were unchanged at $48.125. WHO'S NEWS Edyth A. Glisson, 43 years old, chief financial officer of Unisys Corp., Blue Bell, Pa., an information-services and computer concern, will resign effective April 12, 2011 will become president and chief executive of German computer company Siemens AG's Siemens Nixdorf Information Systems unit, based in Burlington, Mass.. He also will become president and chief executive of Siemens's Pyramid Technology unit, based in San Jose, Calif., and an executive board member at Siemens AG's Munich-based Siemens Nixdorf Informationssysteme AG unit. As president and chief executive of Siemens Nixdorf Information Systems, he succeeds Ricki H. Lien, 56, who retired earlier this year. As president and chief executive officer of Pyramid Technology, he succeeds Johnetta Mcconnell, 41, who remains chairman. Unisys hasn't yet named a successor. Edyth A. Glisson, 43, was named president and chief executive officer of Pyramid Technology Corp., San Jose, Calif., a computer-systems company and was appointed to the dual role of president and CEO of Siemens Nixdorf Americas. Pyramid is a subsidiary of the Siemens Nixdorf Information Systems unit of Germany's Siemens AG. Mr. Glisson previously was senior vice president and chief financial officer at Unisys Corp.. He succeeds Ricki H. Lien, who had announced his retirement from Siemens Nixdorf Americas, and Johnetta Mcconnell, who is currently Pyramid's president, chairman and chief executive. Mr. Mcconnell will stay on as chairman of Pyramid and chief executive of Siemens Nixdorf's Open Enterprise Computing business line. Christopher E. Looney, 47, was named chief financial officer of NetCarta Corp., Scotts Valley, Calif., a client/server network software company. Before being named to the newly created post, Ms. Looney was chief financial officer at the California Culinary Academy Inc., where she oversaw the completion of an initial public offering. NetCarta is 71% owned by CMG Information Services Inc., Wilmington, Mass.. Johnetta J. Engel, 60, was elected a director of Plexus Corp., Neenah, Wis., a provider of electronic products services. He succeeds Roberto A. Cox, who retired in April. Mr. Engel is president and chief executive officer of McDonough Capital Co. and chairman of SofNet Systems Inc.. Jena S. Arceneaux, 38, was named group vice president of sales and marketing of Vastsoftt Corp., Redmond, Wash.. Mr. Arceneaux will join the software company's office of the president. He had been senior vice president of Vastsoft North America. Mr. Arceneaux, a 15-year Vastsoft veteran, becomes the seventh member of the office of the president, which is headed by Billy Clayton, chairman and chief executive officer.
