The planned purchase of Arm by Nvidia is causing some big concerns with the UK’s competition watchdog, potentially putting the acquisition at risk.
The UK chip designer Arm might end up being bought by the US company Nvidia for £29 billion, but the Competition and Markets Authority (aka CMA) seems concerned that the new deal could “stifle innovation”, according to a report by the BBC.
Arm currently supplies semiconductor chips to other technology companies, including Apple and Qualcomm. Some fear that Nvidia could cut off its rivals from access to some of Arms IP if the takeover went through. Industries such as gaming and self-driving cars could also be affected by the takeover.
Nvidia has reportedly offered up some remedies to find a solution for this issue, but the CMA has reportedly said these changes “would not be enough to allay its concerns.”
As a result, this deal will potentially be subject to a ‘phase two’ investigation, which will take a deeper look at Nvidia’s planned takeover.
However, it’s too early to say whether this takeover will actually fall through, with Nvidia’s CEO Jensen Huang seemingly confident that the acquisition will still be completed.
“Our discussions with regulators are taking longer than initially thought, so it’s pushing out the timetable,” Huang told told The Financial Times (via The Verge). “But we’re confident in the deal, we’re confident regulators should recognize the benefits of the acquisition.”
Trusted Reviews has reached out to Nvidia for further comment, but we have not received a response. We will update this article as soon as more information becomes available.
The Trusted Take
Make no mistake, Nvidia’s planned acquisition could have seismic consequences for the rest of the technology industry, with Arm currently supplying chips for the majority of smartphones, tablets, portable gaming systems and an increasing number of laptops following Apple’s transition to the M1 chip.
It’s no surprise that the CMA is concerned, with Nvidia already active in the same industry and a current Arm customer for its Tegra chips, which are found in both the Nintendo Switch and Shield TV. Nvidia seems calm, so the deal could still go through, but this certainly won’t be the last we’ll hear from the CMA regarding the acquisition.
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