It looks like TDDDF is trying to really improve it's position.
3Dlabs Acquires Dynamic Pictures
PR Newswire - July 14, 1998 16:30
Two Market Leaders Combine Silicon, Software, OEM and Channel Strengths
HAMILTON, Bermuda, July 14 /PRNewswire/ -- 3Dlabs(R) Inc., Ltd. (Nasdaq: TDDDF) today announced that it has acquired Dynamic Pictures, Inc. in a stock for stock transaction. Dynamic Pictures, a privately-held company based in Santa Clara, CA, is a leading supplier of professional 2D/3D graphics boards for the Windows NT(R)-based PC workstation market. It is best known for its Oxygen(TM) brand of products which it supplies through the VAR channel. 3Dlabs is a leading supplier of high-performance 3D graphics chips and software to OEMs, and is known for its award winning GLINT(R) and PERMEDIA(R) graphics processor families. The acquisition marks 3Dlabs' entry into vertically integrated board-level products for the fast-growing PC workstation market, augmenting its continuing GLINT chip business in this segment.
3Dlabs acquired Dynamic Pictures for a consideration of 1,800,000 common shares of 3Dlabs and assumed outstanding Dynamic Pictures' debts and long-term liabilities of approximately $2.9 million. The acquisition will be accounted for using the purchase method. 3Dlabs expects to record a one-time write-off of in-process research and development as well as other acquisition-related costs in the third quarter. The company expects the acquisition to be accretive to earnings-per-share in fiscal 1999 and will seek to achieve operational cost savings as the two organizations and product lines are integrated. The acquisition is expected to be dilutive for the remainder of 1998.
The company today also announced the formation of two strategic business units (SBUs) focused on PC workstation and PC desktop markets respectively. Neil Trevett, formerly vice president of marketing at 3Dlabs, will become vice president of workstation products, responsible for managing the Workstation SBU operations. This business unit will develop and market both board-level and chip-level solutions for the Windows NT and OpenGL(R)-based PC workstation market. The Workstation SBU will combine 3Dlabs' existing GLINT business with the additional personnel, technology and distribution strengths of Dynamic Pictures.
James Carrington, formerly director of marketing at 3Dlabs, will become vice president of desktop products. The Desktop SBU will develop and market chip-level PERMEDIA products for the mainstream Windows(R) 95/98 and Direct3D(R)-based PC graphics markets, including the high-performance and consumer segments. In these PERMEDIA-related markets, 3Dlabs does not intend to enter the board business and will remain a merchant chip supplier.
"We anticipate that the combined resources of the two organizations will strengthen 3Dlabs' established position as a leading provider of 3D graphics technology for the PC workstation market. These combined resources include silicon engineering, software development, board design, board production and both OEM and channel distribution," said Osman Kent, president and CEO of 3Dlabs. "The expanded company has substantially increased engineering capacity, which we expect to improve our time-to-market performance for the GLINT, Oxygen, and PERMEDIA families."
"We also expect to leverage Dynamic Pictures' strengths to accelerate our entry into the workstation board business and to achieve our channel distribution goals. Dynamic Pictures has proven experience in the professional graphics board market and we believe that this acquisition will augment 3Dlabs' current chip and OEM business," continued Kent. "By vertically integrating board and chip design in the same company, we expect to be able to develop and market superior products, more quickly and at reduced cost. While 3Dlabs' entry into the workstation board business will create a new competitive dynamic with some of our current GLINT partners, we intend to continue to support these customers fully with merchant GLINT chips and software drivers."
"We have established a strong brand in the distribution channel and in the ISV and end-user communities with our Oxygen family of professional 3D graphics boards. Our PowerThreads(TM) technology effectively leverages multiple Intel CPUs for increased OpenGL performance and complements 3Dlabs' GLINT Gamma technology very well," said David Everett, president and CEO of Dynamic Pictures. "We look forward to combining the technologies and brands of both companies to provide end-users and OEMs with a family of compelling and competitive high-performance professional graphics products."
About 3Dlabs
Founded in 1994, 3Dlabs is a leading innovator and a fabless supplier of high-performance graphics semiconductors, software, and related technologies designed to bring cost-effective 3D graphics to the personal computer. The Company markets and sells its award-winning merchant 3D graphics processors to PC and graphics board OEM customers and selectively licenses its embeddable graphics processor cores on a royalty-bearing basis to strategic technology partners such as Texas Instruments. Companies using 3Dlabs' graphics processors in their systems include Acer, Compaq, Core, Dell, Digital Equipment Corporation, Fujitsu, Gateway, Hewlett-Packard, Hitachi, IBM, MaxVision, Micron, NEC, Siemens Nixdorf and TriStar. Leading board vendors using 3Dlabs' graphics processors include AccelGraphics, Creative Labs, Diamond Multimedia, ELSA, Hercules, Leadtek, Omnicomp and STB systems.
About Dynamic Pictures
Founded in 1994, Dynamic Pictures designs, develops and markets board-level 3D graphics accelerators for desktop workstations and personal computers, targeting customers in the MCAD, AEC, animation, and visual computing fields. Dynamic Pictures markets and sells its Oxygen 3D graphics accelerators through technical OEMs, distributors and value-added resellers. The company was a privately held corporation with headquarters in Santa Clara, CA.
Forward Looking Statements
Various matters set forth in this press release, such as statements relating to Company's ability to successfully exploit technological and market position of Dynamic Pictures and 3Dlabs; the Company's expansion into high-end board business; the Company's ability to integrate Dynamic Pictures into 3Dlabs' operations; the Company's ability to deploy Dynamic Pictures' personnel and technologies on 3Dlabs' products; the Company's ability to achieve cost reductions; the expectation that the acquisition will be accretive to earnings in 1999; the future competitiveness and OEM or end-user acceptance of Company's products are forward looking statements. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, including without limitation, the ability and willingness of the Company's manufacturing partners to produce products in a timely and cost-effective manner and in sufficient quantities; the ability of the Company to obtain and keep design wins for these products; the ability of the Company's products to adequately meet the price/performance requirements of its customers; the success of the Company's customers in achieving sustained demand for systems incorporating the Company's current and future products; the impact and pricing of competitive products; the impact of the acquisition on the Company's business; the willingness of Company's current customers to pay outstanding accounts receivables and to continue to do business with the Company; the ability of the Company to reduce its existing cost structure and eliminate current and anticipated losses at Dynamic Pictures and at 3Dlabs; the introduction of alternative technological advances and other risks detailed from time-to-time in 3Dlabs' SEC reports.
NOTE: 3Dlabs, GLINT, Oxygen, PowerThreads, PERMEDIA, are either trademarks or registered trademarks of 3Dlabs Inc. Ltd. Microsoft, Windows, Windows NT and Direct3D are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries. OpenGL is a registered trademark of Silicon Graphics, Inc. All other trademarks are acknowledged and recognized.
SOURCE 3Dlabs Inc.
/NOTE TO EDITORS: Please note that 3Dlabs is written as one word,
without a space and with a capital D./
/CONTACT: Osman Kent, President and CEO, 408-450-3288, or
osman.kent@3dlabs.com; or Tom Donohue, Vice President and CFO, 408-436-3455,
or tom.donohue@3dlabs.com, both of 3Dlabs/
/Web site: 3dlabs.com
(TDDDF)
|
