Patent holding company Mosaid agrees to deal with Sterling Partners

Patent holding company Mosaid Technologies has shunned a second offer from rival WiLAN in favor of a dealing with private equity firm Sterling Partners.

The firm will acquire all of the outstanding common shares of Mosaid for a cash payment of $46 per share, valuing the entire transaction at $590 million. WiLAN had offered to pay $42 per share for the company.

Mosaid's board unanimously recommends that shareholders reject WiLAN's bid, which made an initial bid of $38 per share last month that Mosaid's board rejected.

Mosaid said it contacted more than 35 parties to discuss their interest in pursuing a strategic transaction with the company. As a result of those contacts, Mosaid said it entered into confidentiality and standstill agreements with 12 interested parties and had ongoing discussions with multiple parties.

Mosaid recently acquired Core Wireless and its portfolio of 400 patent families, consisting of approximately 2,000 wireless patents and patent applications originally filed by Nokia, 1,215 of which have been declared essential to 2G, 3G, and 4G standards, Mosaid said. The patents have remaining lives of 10 years, on average, and cover 49 different countries.

For more:
- see this release

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