back to article SCREEEECH: US national security agency puts brakes on Qualcomm takeover

American national security bods on the US government's Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) have asked Qualcomm to delay tomorrow’s vote on Broadcom’s proposed $117bn (£84.7bn) takeover. With a timing to make even the most imaginative soap opera writer slap a palm to face and mutter "steady on now, …

  1. Voland's right hand Silver badge

    Exactly as predicted

    Exactly as I predicted 2 days ago:

    Next stop on the line is the European commission competition review of the merger.

    Spanner meet works, works meet spanner.

    1. Charlie Clark Silver badge

      Re: Exactly as predicted

      And I think I made similar noises myself a while back. Qualcom is an MVP (player) for the US military so the deal won't happen unless the men in uniform are happy they can get their suppliers to do everything they want. Broadcom has increasingly been acting like a private equity vehicle loaded up with debt and looking for a quick profit. Difficult to the see the generals and the spooks liking that.

      1. FrankAlphaXII

        Re: Exactly as predicted

        And that's what made me think (along with the article's title) that the actual National Security Agency was objecting to it as Broadcom might make it more difficult for the NSA to backdoor military comms equipment, which is something that they do in case someone who we're bombing is using our shit. It happens more frequently than you'd probably think.

        The CFIUS is more an economic protection agency than anything to do with actual security so I doubt it really has all that much to do with that, and more to do with ensuring that US business criminals reap the most reward from selling out to the Chinese.

  2. lafnlab

    TITSUP

    I wonder if El Reg will post something with all the permutations of TITSUP it has published.

    1. daflibble

      Re: TITSUP

      "lafnlab

      TITSUP

      I wonder if El Reg will post something with all the permutations of TITSUP it has published."

      I suggest a commemorative tea towel with the top 5 when they reach a significant round number.

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Perhaps I'm missing something here, but if Qualcomm don't want to be taken over, can't they just say no to Broadcom?

    1. Orv Silver badge

      I'm assuming it's a hostile takeover, where Broadcom has acquired a controlling interest in Qualcomm's stock. If enough shareholders vote for the merger, the board can't stop it.

  4. TrumpSlurp the Troll
    Trollface

    redomiciliation

    What the fuck does that even mean?

    1. a_yank_lurker

      Re: redomiciliation

      Reincorporating the parent company in its original country from the context of the article. However, there may be more to the spooks concern than just where the parent is located, like the financial stability of the buyer.

  5. tom dial Silver badge

    They could, but it would depend on a shareholder vote. Offered a suitably attractive combination of cash and Broadcom stock they might prefer to vote for the takeover.

    1. Will Godfrey Silver badge
      Unhappy

      Indeed. it's something of an obscenity that 'big business' these days has little (if anything) to do with business, and is mostly about amassing money - regardless of the consequences for real people.

  6. oiseau
    FAIL

    Sheer stupidity

    Hello:

    From Gareth Corfield on 04/12/2017:

    "Both firms specialise in making system-on-chip processors. A merger would see the consolidated company controlling a large portion of the world's silicon supply."

    This is the real issue at hand.

    It would be sheer stupidity to allow this to happen.

    Because before you realise it, a "large portion" becomes "all".

    But then, in today's world ...

    Cheers.

    1. Michael Wojcik Silver badge

      Re: Sheer stupidity

      controlling a large portion of the world's silicon supply

      Clever. Sand is our second-most-consumed natural resource, after all.

      Forget chips. First you get the sand, then you get the money.

  7. Mage Silver badge

    NXP

    Why didn't anyone stop that?

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