CHICAGO and SAN JOSE, Calif.-Motorola Inc. and Siemens AG both made investments in small wireless firms this week.
Motorola said Wednesday it made a strategic minority investment in Sonaptic Ltd.
Headquartered in High Wycombe, United Kingdom, Sonaptic has developed technology that creates a three-dimensional sound environment. The technology can be incorporated into mobile devices and can be used for games, user interface enhancement, music and ringtones, said the company.
The second round of funding for Sonaptic also included investments from Pentech Ventures and ROHM Inc.
Siemens Venture Capital announced a multimillion-dollar investment in Global Locate Inc., along with a product alignment in assisted global positioning system products.
Global Locate is focused on location-based services by marketing a portfolio of A-GPS semiconductors, network products and services. Siemens will integrate Global Locate’s A-GPS technologies into its new solution for A-GPS network technology.
“Global Locate is extremely fortunate to be so tightly coupled with Siemens,” said Scott Pomerantz, Global Locate’s president and chief executive officer. “Our company has worked closely integrating our products, technology and services into the Siemens location product portfolio over the past four years. Global Locate will continue to support Siemens on its evolving wireless strategies well into the future.”
