Research In Motion made a hostile takeover bid on Wednesday for wireless VPN security company Certicom, offering around $1.19 per share, or $52.4 million for the company.
The Canadian firm said it had tried to reach out to Certicom's management and had been unable to come to an agreement. RIM said the offer represented a 75 percent premium on Certicom's shares as they stood on Dec. 2. Certicom rolled out the first wireless VPN for cellphones in 2002 and has worked with a variety of handset makers, including Motorola. The move came on the same day RIM downgraded its fiscal third quarter outlook.
"We believe our proposed offer is fair, reflects the full value of Certicom and takes into account the growth prospects and potential synergies made possible by this transaction," said RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie in a statement. "As we are unable to engage Certicom management in a meaningful dialogue to advance the terms of a potential transaction, we believe it is in the best interests of our respective shareholders, employees and customers to make this attractive offer directly to Certicom shareholders now."
For more:
- see this article
- see this release
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