Company:CSR plc

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Short description: 1998–2015 British fabless semiconductor company
CSR plc
TypePublic limited company
IndustrySemiconductors
Communications
FateAcquired by Qualcomm
Founded1998; 26 years ago (1998) (as Cambridge Silicon Radio)
Defunct14 August 2015 (2015-08-14)
HeadquartersCambridge, England , United Kingdom
Key people
Ron Mackintosh (Chairman)
Joep van Beurden (CEO)
Will Gardiner (CFO)
ProductsFabless semiconductor that included connectivity, audio, imaging and GPS chips
RevenueUS$774.8 million (2014)[1]
US$97.0 million (2014)[1]
US$96.8 million (2014)[1]
Websitecsr.com

CSR plc (formerly Cambridge Silicon Radio) was a multinational fabless semiconductor company headquartered in Cambridge, United Kingdom. Its main products were connectivity, audio, imaging and location chips. CSR was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index until it was acquired by Qualcomm in August 2015. Under Qualcomm's ownership, the company was renamed Qualcomm Technologies International, Ltd.

History

The company was founded in 1998 and split away from Cambridge Consultants as Cambridge Silicon Radio or CSR in 1999. The founding directors, who were all at Cambridge Consultants at the time were Phil O'Donovan,[2] James Collier and Glenn Collinson.[3] It was first listed on the London Stock Exchange in 2004.[4]

In 2005 the company acquired Clarity Technologies, a leading clear voice capture (CVC) business[5] and UbiNetics, a 3G wireless (WCDMA/UMTS/HSDPA) technology company.[6] In 2007, CSR acquired Nordnav, a Swedish-based GPS software company, and CPS, a Cambridge-based GPS software company producing Enhanced GPS in partnership with Motorola.[7]

In February 2009, CSR announced it was merging with SiRF, the biggest global supplier of GPS chips, in a share deal worth $136 million;[8] in July 2010, CSR announced the acquisition of Belfast-based APT Licensing Ltd. (APT) and its aptX audio technology[9] and in February 2011, CSR announced it was merging with Zoran, a video and imaging technology company.[10]

In May 2012, CSR acquired Direct Digital Feedback Amplifier (DDFA) technology, a proprietary, highly scalable digital Class-D audio amplifier technology;[11] in June 2012, CSR announced that it had acquired the MAPX (formerly MAP-X) audio product line from Trident Microsystems, Inc[12] and in July 2012, Samsung Electronics agreed to acquire CSR's mobile phone connectivity (Bluetooth and Wi-Fi) and location (GPS/GNSS) businesses and associated IP for US$310 million (£198 million).[13] As part of the deal Samsung acquired a stake of 4.9% in CSR.[13]

In June 2014, CSR acquired the people and technology of Reciva, a networked audio streaming platform, for US$5 million[14] and in October 2014, the acquisition of CSR by Qualcomm for $2.5 billion was agreed.[15] The transaction was completed in August 2015.[16]

Products

CSR BC7820

CSR's products included platform solutions for Bluetooth, GPS, FM broadcasting, Wi-Fi, audio, imaging, and ARM processors.[17] After the Zoran merger, CSR also made digital imaging products based on the MIPS architecture.[18][19]

Offices

Churchill House, part of CSR's corporate campus at the Cambridge Business Park

CSR had 27 offices in 13 countries:

  • Churchill House, Cambridge Business Park, Cambridge, UK
  • Trinity House, Cambridge Business Park, Cambridge, UK
  • Selwyn House, Cambridge Business Park, Cambridge, UK
  • Unit 400, Cambridge Science Park, Cambridge, UK
  • Part of St. John's House, St. John's Innovation Park, Cambridge, UK
  • Quay West, Manchester, England, UK
  • Bristol and Bath Science Park, Bristol, England, UK
  • Legacy Building, Catalyst Inc, Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK
  • Ingolstadt, Germany
  • Freiburg, Germany
  • Haifa, Israel
  • Auburn Hills, Michigan, United States
  • Phoenix, Arizona, United States
  • Sunnyvale, California, United States
  • Santa Ana, California, United States
  • Burlington, Massachusetts, United States
  • Plano, Texas, United States
  • Beijing, China
  • Shanghai, China
  • Shenzhen, China
  • Prestige Technology Park II, Bangalore, India
  • Noida, India
  • Tokyo, Japan
  • Seongnam, Gyunggi-Do, Korea
  • Gumi, Korea
  • United Square, Singapore
  • Taipei, Taiwan
  • Zhongli, Taiwan
  • Lund, Ideon Science Park, Sweden

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Annual Report 2014". CSR plc. http://csr.com/sites/default/files/result-presentations/results/pdf/csr-2014-annual-report-2104.pdf. 
  2. "Philip O'Donovan - Royal Academy of Engineering". https://www.raeng.org.uk/about-us/the-fellowship/new-fellows-2017/fellows/philip-o-donovan. 
  3. Kirk, Kate; Cotton, Charles (2012). The Cambridge Phenomenon: 50 years of innovation and enterprise. London: Third Millennium Publishing. ISBN 9781906507527. http://www.cambridgephenomenon.com. 
  4. and became a FTSE250 company in the same year. Blue tooth firms IPO share fetch top price
  5. "CSR plc acquisition of Clarity Technologies, Inc". ic-tech.com. http://www.ic-tech.com/newroom/CSRacquisitionClarityTechnologies.html. 
  6. "FindArticles.com | CBSi". http://findarticles.com/?noadc=1. 
  7. "EDN - Industry News, Learning center, electronic design center". edn-europe.com. http://www.edn-europe.com/csrbuysnordnavcpstoaddgpscapability+article+432+Europe.html. 
  8. "Merger Agreement with SiRF". http://production.investis.com/csr_tools/rns/rnsitem?id=1234249266nRnsJ0578N. 
  9. "CSR buys Belfast based audio compression specialist". New Electronics. 28 July 2010. http://www.newelectronics.co.uk/electronics-news/csr-buys-belfast-based-audio-compression-specialist/26654/. 
  10. "CSR plc announces merger with Zoran Corporation". http://production.investis.com/csr_tools/rns/rnsitem?id=4061085. 
  11. "CSR Strengthens Its Audio Platform with High Fidelity Class-D Amplifier Technology". Businesswire. 1 May 2012. http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20120501005208/en/CSR-Strengthens-Audio-Platform-High-Fidelity-Class-D. 
  12. "CSR buys Trident's audio processor line". EE Times. 6 June 2012. http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1261889. 
  13. 13.0 13.1 "Samsung buys chipmaker CSR's handset technology". Reuters. 17 July 2012. http://uk.reuters.com/article/oukin-uk-samsung-csr-idUKBRE86G11M20120717?type=companyNews. 
  14. "CSR Capital Markets Day Report, June 2014". http://www.csr.com/sites/default/files/result-presentations/results/pdf/csr_capital_markets_day_2014_rns_final_0.pdf. 
  15. "Qualcomm trumps Microchip with $2.5 billion deal for Britain's CSR" (Press release). Reuters. 15 October 2014. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 30 June 2017.
  16. "Qualcomm completes $2.4bn take-over of Cambridge's CSR". Cambridge News. http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/Qualcomm-completes-2-4bn-Cambridge-8217-s-CSR/story-27608788-detail/story.html. 
  17. "CSR Joins Qualcomm". csr.com. http://www.csr.com/annualreport2010/. 
  18. "CSR Wireless Technology Product Finder". csr.com. http://www.csr.com/products/76/supratv265. 
  19. "CSR Wireless Technology Product Finder". csr.com. http://www.csr.com/products/coach16.