Motorola to acquire Symbol Technologies for $3.9 billion
Sure, a bar code reader lacks the "wow" appeal of a sleek cell phone, but Motorola Inc. needs gadgets to beef up sales to business, too, not just consumers.
Hence, Motorola's announcement Tuesday that it will pay $3.9 billion in cash for Symbol Technologies, the leading maker of bar code readers and rugged mobile computers.
It's Schaumburg, Ill.-based Motorola's biggest acquisition since its $17 billion buyout of cable TV equipment maker General Instrument Corp. in 2000.
Analysts generally praised the deal, saying it was priced fairly and should help Motorola broaden its customer base. "It's ultimately a good strategic move," said Bill Choi, an analyst at Jefferies & Co.
Motorola's stock closed at $24.93, down two cents on Tuesday. The ho-hum response may stem from the notion that the deal won't have a major near-term financial effect.
"Even under a best case scenario, Symbol doesn't really do much," said James Faucette, an analyst at Pacific Crest Securities. The revenues Motorola will get from Symbol will likely be equivalent to the sales of a few million new Krzr (Krazer) mobile phones, he said.
Motorola is the world's second biggest cell phone maker and the Krzr, a follow up to the Razr, is expected to be a big seller. It made its global retail debut Tuesday in Hong Kong. [ read full article ]
Pasadena, Calif.-based technology firm expands radio tracking availability
PASADENA -- Avery Dennison Corp. is expanding the scope of radio tracking systems by making its technology available to label makers and acquiring a start-up company.
The Pasadena-based company announced it will license its "high-speed, strap attach" technology for radio frequency identification to other companies.
Radio frequency identification is used in everything from access cards to transit passes to World Cup tickets. RFID uses a microprocessor and antenna to communicate information to a reader.
Avery Dennison uses RFID technology to build electronic identification into labels. The traditional way of making RFID labels is to attach a chip directly to an antenna and build it into a label, said Stan Drobac, Avery Dennison vice president of RFID strategy.
But the chip is a millimeter square or less, and much less than a millimeter thick, so it's hard to handle and the electrical connection to the antenna requires precision, he said.
Avery Dennison developed a method of attaching the chip to a "strap," or carrier for the chip, and attaching the strap to the antenna. The strap is much bigger and easier to handle than a chip. [ read full article ]
System addresses communication gap - Dallas first responders can share information with other agencies via voice, video and data with new technology
DALLAS -- In a significant step toward developing a statewide system, law enforcement and government first responders in Dallas now have the ability to communicate via voice, video and data in the event of a catastrophic event.
Various local and state officials, including Steve McCraw, Texas' director of homeland security, said the system, based at Dallas Love Field and unveiled Thursday, addresses the inability of emergency response personnel to communicate during recent large-scale disasters, including 9-11, the Gulf Coast hurricanes and the Panhandle wildfires.
Many devices communicate only with other devices made by the same manufacturer. Studies show that 1 of 3 joint operations are impeded by poor communications.
"If you've got a firefighter in Corpus Christi and he comes up to Dallas, he ought to be able to talk to a Dallas firefighter using his own equipment," McCraw said.
State officials envision a network able to coordinate mutual aid communications statewide by Jan. 7. Mobile vehicles can be fitted with the equipment to bring network service to remote areas of the state.
At Love Field, hand-held push-to-talk devices already allow city, airport and Southwest Airlines workers to use a simultaneous array of communications. [ read full article ]