NextWave, which is shedding as many businesses as it can to stay afloat after burning through some serious cash during the last year, have sold off its majority stake in its IPWireless subsidiary for $1 million to IPW Holdings, which is made up of the senior management team of IPWireless.
NextWave bought the company in April 2007 for $100 million and now is selling the division back at a fraction of the price. IPWireless has developed UMTS TD-CDMA technology as well as its own mobile TV technology that was gaining traction earlier last year with WiMAX vendors. IPWireless and IPW Holdings entered into a separate transaction with a strategic customer under which IPWireless received debt financing to support its business operations, and NextWave will have no continuing obligations to fund or otherwise provide support to IPWireless.
In November, NextWave said it discontinued its networks business, which included Go Networks, IPWireless and Cygnus subsidiaries, as well as its global services and NextWave Network product support strategic business units in order to stay operating. The company has had its hands in a number of businesses including WiMAX chips and broadband wireless equipment and has struggled with the downturn in the economy.
NextWave, which wants to play big in the WiMAX chip market, said it has sought the services of Canaccord Adams to explore strategic transactions to preserve the value of its semiconductor business and eliminate the need for the company to make on-going capital investments in or incur liabilities relating to the business past the end of the first fiscal quarter of 2009.
For more:
- read this release
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