The technology business week: Microsoft to buy Nokia’s devices business, Verizon to acquire Vodafone’s stake

9 Sep 2013

Nokia CEO Stephen Elop launches the Nokia Lumia 1020 in New York on 11 July 2013

A digest of the top business technology news stories from the past week.

Microsoft to acquire Nokia’s devices business for €5.44bn

Microsoft is to buy smartphone maker Nokia’s handset business for €5.44bn as the company realigns itself to be a provider of consumer hardware rather than software.

Under the terms of the agreement, Microsoft will pay €3.79bn for Nokia’s devices and services business, and €1.65bn to license Nokia’s patents.

The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2014. At that time, Stephen Elop, president and CEO of Nokia, will leave that role to take up the job of Nokia executive vice-president of devices and services.

Verizon confirms €99bn deal to buy out Vodafone’s stake

US mobile player Verizon has entered into an agreement to acquire Vodafone’s 45pc stake in the company for €99bn in cash and stock.

The deal, which is expected to close in the first quarter of 2014, will give Verizon 100% ownership of its own company.

“This transaction will enhance value across platforms and allow Verizon to operate more efficiently, so we can continue to focus on producing more seamless and integrated products and solutions for our customers,” said Lowell McAdam, chairman and CEO of Verizon.

Irishman sells global digital media powerhouse Saffron Digital to Cinram for US$47m

Saffron Digital, a major digital media firm in London and Beverly Hills, California, headed up by Irishman Jason Keane, has been sold to Toronto-based entertainment player Cinram for US$47m.

Saffron Digital is a platform provider for over-the-top content delivery and serves more than 30,000 movies to 100m devices, from smartphones to tablets and smart TVs every year.

“Being part of such a successful international entertainment company like Cinram is a great move for Saffron Digital,” Keane said. “It will enable us to significantly scale our existing digital business and build a unique premium content delivery platform that works seamlessly from physical through digital to the end user.”

Arekibo acquires X Communications for undisclosed sum

Dublin-based digital business consultancy Arekibo has acquired digital media agency X Communications for an undisclosed sum.

The acquisition comes as part of Arekibo’s longer-term strategy to launch into the UK market in 2014.

Both companies will continue to offer multi-channel digital business solutions to enterprises, government and international organisations.

Collison brothers’ Stripe e-commerce platform goes live in Ireland

Stripe, the start-up that aims to make it easier for businesses to accept online payments, has officially launched its service in Ireland.

Stripe’s online payments processing platform kicked off in the UK in March and it’s also available in France, Belgium and the Netherlands as a private beta.

Two brothers from Limerick, John and Patrick Collison, are the co-founders of Stripe. The company is now based in San Francisco, California.

Yahoo! unveils its new logo

Internet giant Yahoo! has taken the wraps off its new logo to reveal a more streamlined and serif-free – albeit still purple – design to reflect the whimsy and sophistication of the company, according to CEO Marissa Mayer.

“We hadn’t updated our logo in 18 years. Our brand, as represented by the logo, has been valued at as much as US$10bn,” Mayer wrote on her blog. “So, while it was time for a change, it’s not something we could do lightly.”

Other differences between the old Yahoo! logo and the new one are the new logo sports thicker and thinner strokes and doesn’t have any straight lines.

New Yahoo! logo