The Google logo is seen on a smartphone in front of a displayed HTC logo in this illustration taken September 21, 2017. REUTERS
The logo of Google is seen outside Google Bay View facilities during the Made by Google event in Mountain View, California, U.S. August 13, 2024. REUTERS
TAIPEI, Jan 23 (Reuters) – Taiwan’s HTC (2498.TW), said on Thursday it will sell part of its unit for extended reality (XR) headsets and glasses to Google (GOOGL.O), for $250 million and transfer some of its employees to the U.S. company.
The two companies will also explore further collaboration opportunities, HTC added.
This is not the first sizable deal between the two companies. In 2017, Google announced its purchase of part of HTC’s smartphone operations for $1.1 billion.
Google said in a separate statement that the latest deal would accelerate the development of the Android XR platform and strengthen the ecosystem for headsets and glasses.
Lu Chia-te, HTC vice president and general counsel, told reporters the company had granted its intellectual property rights to Google as a non-exclusive license.
“Therefore, this is not a buyout nor an exclusive licence. In the future, HTC will still retain the ability to use, utilise, and even further develop it without any restrictions,” he said.
Reporting by Wen-Yee Lee and Ben Blanchard; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Edmund Klamann
