Qualcomm will obviously be expanding into the automotive industry with their purchase of NXP Semiconductors. You may not have heard of them but if you own a car you likely have a few of their products, they supply the chips which handle keyless entry, entertainment systems, RF comms and even the USB chargers.  They generally utilize ARM chips and while this is unlikely to change, Qualcomm will add their own special sauce to upcoming generations of vehicular electronics.  The mobile phone industry is very large but also slowing down and this purchase should help Qualcomm stay at the forefront of the market.  Pop over to Slashdot for links and reactions.

"San Diego-based Qualcomm agreed to pay $110 a share in cash for NXP, the biggest supplier of chips used in the automotive industry, or 11 percent more than Wednesday's close, the companies said in a statement Thursday. The deal will be funded with cash on hand as well as new debt. Chief Executive Officer Steve Mollenkopf is betting the deal, the largest in the chip industry's history, will accelerate his company's entry into the burgeoning market for electronics in cars."

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