The world’s largest chipmaker will start the new year with a fresh focus on mobile. Intel (Nasdaq: INTC) is combining four business units into one mobile and communications group to be led by two Intel managers with significant mobile phone experience.
Mike Bell worked on the iPhone at Apple, then helped develop the Palm Pre before coming to Intel last year. Hermann Eul led Infineon’s mobile phone business, and Intel brought him on board when it bought the German company’s wireless phone business this year. At Intel, Bell has been in charge of Intel’s ultra mobility group, and Eul has been running its mobile communications unit. Together, Bell and Eul will run Intel’s new mobile and communications group, which will combine its netbook and tablets division, its ultra mobility division, its mobile communications division and its mobile wireless division.
Long the world’s leading supplier of chips for personal computers, Intel has struggled to persuade smartphone and tablet makers to build devices that use its products. Intel’s x86 processors typically use more battery life than the lower-powered chips made by ARM (NASDAQ: ARMH). But this month reports surfaced saying that Sprint may soon be selling an Intel-powered phone made by Samsung. This fall Intel announced a deal with Google, saying future versions of Google’s Android operating system will be optimized for Intel’s Atom platform.
For Intel, the move to mobile can’t happen quickly enough. The company is seeing weakness in its core business supplying chips for personal computers and recently cut its fourth quarter revenue forecast by about 6%. Intel had a strong third quarter, but overall 2011 has been a tough year for the semiconductor industry, with several companies reorganizing to increase their focus on mobile applications processors.
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