Samsung to buy part of British electronics firm

SEOUL—South Korea’s Samsung Electronics said Tuesday it had signed a deal to buy a mobile technology unit belonging to British firm Cambridge Silicon Radio (CSR) in a bid to improve its handheld devices.

Under the deal signed Monday, Samsung will buy CSR’s facility which develops mobile connectivity and location technologies — used in devices such as smartphones and tablet PCs — by the end of this year, for $310 million.

Samsung, the world’s largest maker of smartphones, will also take over related patents held by the British firm and 300 workers at the unit, it said in a statement.

It also said it would buy CSR shares worth $34 million to boost ties with the British firm, one of the global leaders in Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and Global Positioning System technologies.

“The deal will enable both companies to better align their current development efforts and future product roadmaps, while accelerating their time-to-market for rapidly evolving demands within the market,” Samsung said.

“This transaction will accelerate our transformation into a more competitive platform company operating in attractive growth markets where we have a leading market position,” Joep van Beurden, CEO of CSR, said.

The South Korean firm, which is battling with Apple’s iPhone and iPad for supremacy in the lucrative smartphone and tablet market, has seen heavy demand for its new Galaxy SIII phone, which was introduced in May.

The technology giant also bought in June Nanoradio, a Swedish company that develops energy-efficient chipsets for Wi-Fi services in smartphones and other mobile devices.