Part 2 of 2. Rockwell Semi spin-off Conexant will target communications IC market
By Mark Lapedus
Electronic Buyers' News
(11/11/98, 10:31:57 AM EDT)
Having established a new corporate name as part of a
previously-announced plan to become an independent company by year's
end, Rockwell Semiconductor Systems Corp. will focus on returning to
profitability in 1999, while also advancing its diversification strategy in the
communications-IC field.
Rockwell Semiconductor's new corporate name - Conexant Systems
Inc.-will become official once it spins out from its parent company,
Rockwell International Corp., on Jan. 4, 1999.
On that day, Conexant will become a new, standalone company listed on
the NASDAQ stock exchange under the symbol ''CNXT.'' (Conexant is a
newly-coined word formed from the verb 'connect,' the adjective 'next,'
and the suffix '-ant.' )
Once established, meanwhile, Conexant will become the world's largest,
standalone communications-IC company with about $1.2 billion in sales in
fiscal 1998 and about 6,300 employees worldwide, according to Dwight
Decker, chairman and chief executive of the new entity, to be based in
Newport Beach, Calif.
''We should be able to move faster in the market (when we're
independent),'' Decker said, referring to the Conexant's ability to develop
and ship products to customers more rapidly than before.
Perhaps the biggest goal for the new company is to reserve a trend of red
ink. Following years rapid growth, Rockwell Semiconductor fell into the red
in fiscal 1998, due in part to a downturn in its core analog-modem chipset
business. In response, the company for some time has been diversifying into
some new and large chip markets, such as ATM, DSL, home networking,
wireless, among others.
At present, the analog-modem chipset business represents about half of the
company's total sales, Decker said. By next year, this chip arena will only
represent one-third of its total sales, he added.
The spin-off has been expected for months. Last summer, Rockwell
International announced plans to spin-off its chip operations in order to
focus on its own, core businesses.
Since then, Rockwell Semiconductor has down-sizing its operations via
layoffs and other cost-cutting measures in order to prepare for the spin-off.
For right now, though, Decker said he does not expect to implement any
more cost-cutting measures.
Could a PAIR/CNXT agreement be in the works? PAIR is located in Tustin, CA; CNXT in Newport Beach, CA (about 10 minutes away). |
