Acquisitions in semiconductor industry rebound in last two weeks despite Covid-19

Within the last two weeks, there’s been a flurry of M&A activity in the semiconductor industry. 2019 saw 30 semiconductor acquisition agreements valued at $32 billion, but what can be said for 2020? And how does recent activity reshape the patent portfolios of semiconductor companies?

Cipher has focused on a number of these transactions and detailed what impact this has on the industry’s patent landscape.

We quickly brought to light the risks involved with bolstering Nuvoton’s patent portfolio with the 1,400 US patents from PSCS (Panasonic Semiconductor Solutions) and discovered that quantity is not always enough with regards to the Panasonic sale to Nuvoton.

Taking a look at the completion of the Ams acquisition of Osram, Cipher analysed the combined patent portfolio of 6,589 patents that now places Ams in a better position to become a global leader in sensor solutions, photonics for both mobile and consumer as well as automotive, industrial and medical applications.

The Cipher analysis carried out on the latest M&A transaction involving Analog Devices and Maxim Integrated shows a consolidated and strengthened patent portfolio in the analog semiconductor industry with the addition of over 970 patent families.