Intel exiting 5G smartphone modem business, focus 5G efforts on network infrastructure

The Santa Clara, CA-based technology giant stated it will complete "an assessment of the opportunities for 4G and 5G modems in PCs, Internet of Things devices, and other data-centric devices. Intel will honor its current customer commitments iits for existing 4G smartphone modem product line, but the announcement means Intel doesn't expect to launch 5G modem products in the smartphone space, including those originally planned for launch in 2020.

“We are very excited about the opportunity in 5G and the ‘cloudification’ of the network, but in the smartphone modem business it has become apparent that there is no clear path to profitability and positive returns,” Intel CEO Bob Swan said in the company's press release Tuesday. “5G continues to be a strategic priority across Intel, and our team has developed a valuable portfolio of wireless products and intellectual property. We are assessing our options to realize the value we have created, including the opportunities in a wide variety of data-centric platforms and devices in a 5G world.”

Intel said it expects to provide additional details in its upcoming first-quarter 2019 earnings release and conference call, scheduled for April 25.

Tuesday's announcement came just hours after Apple and Qualcomm jointly announced that they have agreed to end all litigation against each other worldwide, ending 2 years of back-and-forth legal battles.

Also on Tuesday, Intel announced the acquisition of Omnitek, a provider of optimized video and vision FPGA IP solutions. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.