Intel and Qualcomm to invest in Sharp?

Word is going around that Intel and Qualcomm may team up to invest $378 million into Japanese display maker Sharp to guarantee stable supply of high-quality screens for various devices .

Both firms are interested in quite different displays though, Qualcomm mainly needs a stable supply of high-end screens for smartphones and tablets, while Intel is interested in high-quality, energy-efficient IGZO screens for ultrabooks.

By investing in Sharp, the chip makers aim to improve screen supplies to their clients so they can sell more processors.

Sharp, which market capitalization has decreased by three times this year, is expected to lose ¥450 billion ($5.7 billion) this fiscal year, which means it badly needs money to survive. As a result, the two chip companies are in talks to invest around ¥30 billion ($378 million) into Sharp, reports Reuters news-agency. Sharp received a guarantee for ¥360 billion in loans from its two main lenders, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ and Mizuho Corporate Bank, in September. The loans are enough to sustain the company through its next financial year to March 2014.

Source: X-bit Labs