Intel today announced that it has acquired 1,400 telecommunications patents and patent applications registered by Powerwave Technologies. The patent portfolio was purchased by Intel through the Gores Group private equity firm, which obtained the patents when Powerwave Technologies went bankrupt and shut down in 2013.
It's not yet clear exactly why Intel decided to purchase the patent portfolio, but in the age of mobile, arming yourself with mobile infrastructure patents sounds like an ounce of prevention.
According to Intel, "Powerwave was a pioneer in telecommunications infrastructure products, including antennas and base stations. The patents relate to, among other things, telecommunications infrastructure technologies, including tower-mounted amplifiers, antenna structures, power amplifier configurations, crest factor reduction and digital pre-distortion circuitry."
This isn't Intel's first telecommunications-centric patent deal. In 2012, Intel paid $375 million for 1,700 patents from InterDigital. According to Intel, the InterDigital portfolio involved "patents primarily related to 3G, LTE, and 802.11 technologies."