Broadcom Corp. Monday made a move to add new voice and data capabilities in its products.
Broadcom will exchange about 5
million shares of its Class A common stock for all outstanding shares of
Silicon Spice.
Silicon Spice’s provides the core processing engine within the gateway
and access devices that connect the traditional public-switched-telephone
network to packet-based networks such as the Internet.
The acquisition of Silicon Spice and its communications processor
technology will enable Broadcom, a provider of integrated circuits enabling
broadband communications, to enter new markets in IP and ATM packet-based
networks with flexibility for Any-Service-Any-Port (ASAP), according to an
industry analyst.
“This transaction highlights a new class of devices defined as access
communications processors,” said Will Strauss, president, Forward Concepts,
an analyst for the digital signal processing industry.
“Generally, we believe that access communications processors will
have an even greater impact on the communications market than network
processors have had,” he said.
The company recently launched a new signal processing architecture that
will enable the delivery of voice and data services simultaneously over a
unified data network with the highest density of voice channels in the
industry.
“This unique combination will enable
Broadcom to provide the highest density packet telephony silicon and
software solutions to our customers said Henry T. Nicholas
III, president and chief executive officer of Broadcom.
The merger transaction is expected to close within two months.
