STMicroelectronics acquires ams NFC and RFID reader assets

Semiconductor company STMicroelectronics has announced its acquisition of assets related to ams’s near-field communication (NFC) and radiofrequency identification (RFID) reader business. ST acquired the assets in exchange for a cash payment of $77.8 million and deferred earn-out contingent on future results.

ST says it has acquired intellectual property, technologies, products and business that are complementary to its own secure microcontroller solutions serving mobile devices, wearables, banking, identification, industrial, automotive and IoT markets. The company says it now has a complete portfolio of technologies, products and competencies that comprehensively address the full range of the NFC and RFID markets for a wide customer base.

“Security and NFC connectivity are key prerequisites for the broad rollout of mobile and IoT devices anticipated in the coming years,” said Claude Dardanne, executive vice president and general manager of STMicroelectronics’ Microcontroller and Digital ICs Group. “This acquisition builds on our deep expertise in secure microcontrollers and gives ST all of the building blocks to create the next generation of highly integrated secure NFC solutions for mobile and for a broad range of Internet of Things devices.”

The first NFC controller leveraging the acquired assets is already sampling to lead customers, as well as a high-performance, highly integrated system-in-package solution which combines the controller with ST’s secure element.

Approximately 50 technical experts from ams have been transferred to STMicroelectronics, with Dardanne saying, “We welcome this highly competent team from ams into ST for the benefit of our customers.”