A unit of Broadcom Ltd. has acquired the photodetector business of Irvine-based chipmaker Cosemi Technologies Inc.
Financial terms of the sale to Avago Technologies U.S. Inc. were not disclosed.
The move brings Cosemi’s expertise to Broadcom’s photodetector technology and other chip components.
As part of the deal Cosemi agreed to buy some of the photodetector technology and other components, such as lasers, from Broadcom. The various components hold the potential to pave the way to wider distribution of high-speed photonic connections to a broader audience and range of applications, including the consumer and data center markets.
Cosemi retains its business lines for high-speed fiber optic components and active optical cables to provide connectivity, and plans to focus on the data center market with those products.
The deal marks the third in Orange County in as many years for entities under the banner of Broadcom Ltd., which was formed a year ago after Avago Technologies Inc. acquired Irvine-based chipmaker Broadcom Corp. for $37 billion.
Broadcom Corp. specialized in communication chips, which power Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, near-field communication and RF radio applications in some of the world’s most popular electronics made by the likes of Apple, Samsung, and HTC. It also has strong business lines in broadband, set-top boxes, and data center and networking connectivity.
Broadcom Ltd. is based in Singapore and maintains its U.S. headquarters in San Jose.
The Broadcom Corp. deal furthered Avago’s ongoing diversification effort, which has gained expertise in radio frequency components, fiber optics, storage connectivity, and power amplifiers, among other technologies.
Its smartphone offerings often sit next to Broadcom’s combo chips.
Avago in May 2015 acquired Costa Mesa-based networking gear maker Emulex Corp. for $660 million and cut about 90 workers locally and in San Jose, roughly 8% of its workforce. Emulex’ headquarters at 3333 S. Susan St.—which included about 180,000 square feet of space spread over three buildings and 3.2 acres of adjacent land—fetched nearly $50 million in a sale to Foster City-based investor and developer SteelWave.
Part of the property, which is being redeveloped as a creative-office space dubbed The Hive, is now the home of the Los Angeles Chargers, which recently signed a 10-year lease.
Broadcom since its sale has shed more than 750 local jobs—roughly a third of its Irvine operation—and sold two business units. Four midrise buildings under construction at its new office campus at the Great Park Neighborhoods development site are up for sale, and the local office of real estate investment and development firm Hines Interests LP is emerging as the likely buyer, the Business Journal reported late last year.
Cosemi, which was established in 2006, ranked No. 7 on the Business Journal’s 2010 list of the fastest-growing private companies with a two-year sales growth of 338%.
Its revenue at the time was estimated at $3.5 million.
Broadcom Ltd., whose shares rose 64.3% in the last year to a market value of about $90 billion, is slated to acquire Brocade Communications Systems Inc. in San Jose for $5.9 billion in another blockbuster deal that will shake up the chipmaker industry in a frenzied era of global consolidation.
Broadcom Ltd. last year posted revenue of $13.2 billion, up 94% from a year earlier, and an adjusted profit of $4.6 billion, up 2,059%.
Cosemi executives declined to discuss the sale to Avago, whose representatives could not be reached for comment.
