Imagination Technologies is rapidly becoming a case study on a business with only one major customer. The technology firm has been bought over by the Chinese-backed private equity firm Canyon Bridge. This is after it lost the contract to build GPUs for Apple’s iPhones and iPads.
The company first announced its decision to be sold shortly after Apple decided that it would be building its own graphics chips for the iPhone 8. That itself is a separate issue, as Imagination is contesting Cupertino’s claim that it is able to design its own GPUs without heavily borrowing from the chips it has been buying.
Canyon Bridge is acquiring the UK chipmaker for an impressive £550 million (about RM3.1 billion). Although, this isn’t the firm’s first attempt at buying a semi-conductor producer.
The company had an earlier bid for US based Lattice Semiconductor blocked by President Donald Trump for security concerns. Mostly because the company is backed by Chinese investors.
[Source: BBC, Imagination]
