Enterprise mobility applications vendor Sybase has acquired intellectual
property from privately held iFoundry, an engineering company focused on
designing, developing and building wireless applications, for an undisclosed
amount of cash.
Sybase acquired licensing rights for short-range wireless interconnect
protocol stacks, as well as a software consulting, training and professional
engineering services business, in order to round out its software
development kits (SDKs).
Sybase’s SDKs allow OEMs, original device manufacturers (ODMs) and chipset
manufacturers to implement and embed wireless technology, such as Bluetooth
and infrared (IrDA), into such devices as cellular handsets, mobile
devices and automotive applications.
Terry Stepien, president of Sybase iAnywhere, explained that its customers
have been asking Sybase for services that will help them accelerate their
time to market.
“The acquisition of iFoundry Systems’ professional engineering services team
brings this capability to Sybase, along with strong existing customer
relationships with established mobile device OEM, ODM and chipset
manufacturers,” Stepien said in a statement.
He also noted that the acquisition gives Sybase a presence in Asia, “where
the majority of embedded software design and purchasing decisions are being
made.”
Sybase said it is also gaining valuable embedded software intellectual
property that has been developed by iFoundry Systems but not yet
productized.
The company expects to use this intellectual property to augment its
portfolio of Sybase iAnywhere mobile device applications, giving cellular
phone OEM and ODM customers additional integrated technologies.
Sybase has clearly been eyeing the mobile messaging market, which its CEO,
John Chen, last month estimated will be worth $7.5 billion by 2008.
The company also cited data from IMS Research estimating that revenue
for the worldwide market for Bluetooth-enabled cell phones will increase by
70 percent between 2006 and 2011, and that unit volumes will double from
2006 to 2008, increasing to more than a billion units in 2011.
Only last month, the Dublin, Calif.-based company acquired
mobile content and services provider Mobile 365 for approximately $400
million.
It also acquired Extended Systems for $71.3 million in cash. The buy gave Sybase access to a patented software server called OneBridge, which provides secure mobile access for applications from PDAs and handheld computers.
Sybase and iFoundry Systems have a long-standing relationship, as the
Singapore-based company has been a distributor of iAnywhere mobile device
applications since 2002.
