Taiwan tech giant Hon Hai, parent company of FoxConn, will pay royalties to Microsoft to ward off a lawsuit over its production of devices using rival Google’s Android and Chrome platforms.
Tag Archives: Hon Hai
Microsoft Strikes Patent Deal with Apple iPhone Supplier
Filed under: Investing
Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) continues to claim that Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) Android uses some of its patents. The world’s largest software company has used this leverage to get companies that use Android to sign licenses with it to protect them from legal action.
Microsoft got a big win in this ongoing effort, cutting a deal with the owner of Foxconn, one of the primary manufacturers for several smartphone firms, including Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL).
Microsoft said of the patent deal:
Microsoft Corp. and Hon Hai, the parent company of Foxconn, signed a worldwide patent licensing agreement that provides broad coverage under Microsoft’s patent portfolio for devices running the Android and Chrome OS, including smartphones, tablets and televisions. While the contents of the agreement are confidential, the parties indicate that Microsoft will receive royalties from Hon Hai under the agreement. Hon Hai joins a growing list of contract manufacturing and original design manufacturing companies with Android and Chrome patent licenses.
Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Software, Technology Companies Tagged: AAPL, GOOG, MSFT
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From: http://www.dailyfinance.com/2013/04/17/microsoft-strikes-patent-deal-with-apple-iphone-supplier/
What Is Important in the Financial World (4/17/2013)
Filed under: Investing
Shrinking Green Energy Sector
The race to replace fossil fuels with “green” energy slowed last year. As the industry struggled, China took the lead among nations with green energy investments. It is not much of a prize, as the many countries have decided the environment is not as important as the economy. A study by Pew that covered the green energy sector in 2012 showed:
Although 2012 investment levels worldwide declined 11 percent, to $269 billion, the clean energy sector weathered the withdrawal of priority incentives and initiatives offered by governments in numerous key markets, demonstrating its resilience. Reliable clean energy investment data have been collected for nine years now. Looking at the data in three-year increments, average clean energy investment increased by at least $90 billion triennially — from an average of $64 billion in the 2004-06 period to an average of $156 billion in 2007-09 and $245 billion in 2010-12.
In other words, things got better in the industry, even though they got worse. Among the major categories of clean energy — wind, small hydro, biomas, solar, geothermal and marine — China‘s investment was well ahead of the next two nations — the United States and Germany. China‘s investment was $65.1 billion, the U.S.’s was $35.6 billion and Germany‘s $22.8 billion. With the rise of shale oil and gas, “green” may continue to shrink for years to come.
Microsoft Strikes Patent Deal
Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) continues to claim that Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) Android uses some of its patents. The world’s largest software company has used this leverage to get companies that use Android to sign licenses with it to protect them from legal action. Microsoft got a big win in this ongoing effort, cutting a deal with the owner of Foxconn, one of the primary manufacturers for several smartphone firms, including Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL). Microsoft said of the patent deal:
Microsoft Corp. and Hon Hai, the parent company of Foxconn, signed a worldwide patent licensing agreement that provides broad coverage under Microsoft’s patent portfolio for devices running the Android and Chrome OS, including smartphones, tablets and televisions. While the contents of the agreement are confidential, the parties indicate that Microsoft will receive royalties from Hon Hai under the agreement. Hon Hai joins a growing list of contract manufacturing and original design manufacturing companies with Android and Chrome patent licenses.
Toyota Global Hybrid Sales
Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM) posted worldwide sales data for the period that ended on March 31, including sales of hybrids, which many analysts believe is the future of the industry. The Japanese car company said of its global hybrid sales:
[C]umulative global sales of its hybrid vehicles topped the 5 million unit mark as of March 31, 2013, reaching 5.125 million units.
Positioning response to environmental issues as a management priority and based on its belief that environment-friendly vehicles can only truly have a positive impact if they are used widely, TMC has endeavored to promote the mass-market adoption of hybrid vehicles.
Last year, hybrid vehicles accounted for 14
From: http://www.dailyfinance.com/2013/04/17/what-is-important-in-the-financial-world-4172013/
Apple supplier Hon Hai earns record annual profit
Foxconn’s Hon Hai Precision Industry posted record annual profits last year, a sign that production of Apple products remains strong despite heightened competition from rival electronics vendors. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Computerworld Latest
Which Apple Supply Chain Rumor Should You Believe?
By Evan Niu, CFA, The Motley Fool
Filed under: Investing
The battleground stock that is Apple continues to see investors focus heavily on supply chain rumblings from the other side of the world. Shares were weak today, down over 1% this morning, in part due to bearish sentiment among analysts. On the other hand, there’s also some data that could potentially be good news for the iPhone maker.
Which supply chain rumors should investors believe?
The bad news
Topeka Capital analyst Brian White, who has the Street high price target of $888, says that things aren’t so great within Apple’s supply chain. White is the analyst that has compiled a group of Apple suppliers and bundled them into what he refers to as the “Apple Monitor.” The goal is to gain insight into Apple’s pipeline by looking at sales activity of suppliers.
White’s data shows that the Apple Monitor saw February sales drop by a whopping 31% sequentially from January, far worse than the average 8% decline due to normal seasonality. That figure is the worst performance that the analyst has on record.
CLSA analyst Avi Silver has now downgraded his rating on Apple from “outperform” to “buy” while reducing his price target from $575 to $505, citing lower iPhone unit estimates in the June quarter. This expectation is partially based on a rumored iPhone launch during the summer, in which case sales may decline ahead of new models as consumers are now well attuned to Apple’s rumored product cycles. Silver also sees an upcoming “iPhone Mini” having a negative effect on product mix and margins.
Baird Capital analyst William Power is on record saying the firm’s semiconductor team expects iPhone 5 and iPad shipments to come in below consensus estimates. With the Mobile World Congress wrapping up last week, consumers and investors have gotten a glimpse of the competitive landscape and Power has concerns over Apple’s product demand following the trade show. The analyst is sticking with his $465 price target, which represents modest upside from current prices.
The good news
Reuters is now reporting that both Taiwan Semiconductor and Hon Hai (Foxconn’s parent company) are each planning on adding 5,000 workers to their ranks. Both companies are looking to recruit students that are preparing to graduate from Taiwan University this year.
The reported job additions are notable for several reasons. First off, Apple shares fell 2% last month on reports that Foxconn was instituting a hiring freeze. Part of the pessimism was since the Financial Times speculated it was due to “weakening demand.” It didn’t matter much that other analysts actually thought the hiring freeze was due to improved working conditions and better wages, leading to higher employee retention.
Regardless, reports that Hon Hai is now ramping up recruiting could signal that it needs more employees to ramp up production of upcoming Apple devices. Apple is hardly Hon Hai‘s only customer, but it is easily the company’s biggest.
To date, Taiwan Semiconductor and Apple have had no …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance
Sharp to suspend tie-up talks with Hon Hai, report says
Struggling Japanese electronics maker Sharp plans to suspend tie-up negotiations with Taiwan’s Hon Hai and search for new capital partners, local media reported on Saturday. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Phys.org
Sharp revival plan unlikely to include Hon Hai capital – sources
TOKYO (Reuters) – Sharp Corp is unlikely to include a capital infusion from Hon Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd in its turnaround plan as talks between the two companies have hit a snag, sources familiar with the matter said. The Japanese consumer electronics maker and its main lenders are drawing up a business plan to convince shareholders and creditors that Sharp can survive its ongoing difficulties with debt and fierce competition from foreign brands. …
Hon Hai to Keep Some Apple Production Lines Running During Chinese New Year
By Chuck Jones, ContributorImage via CrunchBase Another indication that demand for Apple’s iPhone 5 and iPad Mini is strong comes from a report by BrightWire translating a Taiwanese United Daily News article that Hon Hai (also known as Foxconn) and at least one other company, PCB supplier Flexium Interconnect, will not shut down during […]
Source: Forbes Latest