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Irvine’s Intersil Corp. Will Acquire SiCom Inc.

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TIMES STAFF WRITER

Intersil Corp., an Irvine maker of semiconductors for wireless computer networks, said on Tuesday it has agreed to acquire an Arizona maker of high-speed wireless network products for about $191 million in stock.

Intersil, which recently moved its headquarters to Orange County from Florida, said in a press release that it would issue 3.7 million shares to buy SiCom Inc., a privately held firm in Scottsdale.

Intersil’s stock closed Tuesday at $51.63 a share, down $1.38 in Nasdaq trading.

SiCom designs chips that allow equipment makers to build broadband wireless networks with greater capacity for less money.

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Intersil, which has about 2,900 employees worldwide, develops wireless networks to connect computers to one another within confined areas, such as homes or businesses, and within public places, such as airports.

The acquisition is a “synergistic fit,” Intersil Chief Executive Greg Williams said. The purchase will enable Intersil to develop semiconductors, software and modem designs that deliver data faster “from the Internet . . . and ultimately to homes,” he said.

SiCom has 64 employees, 35 of whom are engineers, according to Vicki Billings, an Intersil spokeswoman. SiCom will stay in Arizona, and its chief executive, Bob Solem, will remain with the company, Billings said.

The acquisition is the second Intersil has agreed to make since being spun off from Harris Corp. in February. In June, it bought closely held Dutch company No Wires Needed BV to gain a faster wireless technology.

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Bloomberg News contributed to this report.

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