Philips Electronics NV, the Dutch electronics giant, is making a bid to re-open talks with VLSI Technology Inc after the San Jose, California chip maker claimed that Philips had turned down an opportunity for confidential talks and access to confidential information.
With other bidders in the wings, VLSI said that it had reached agreements granting other parties access to non-public information but, despite extensive discussions, no agreement had been reached with Philips. However, an official at the Dutch company said that while they had been unable to reach agreement with VLSI, they hoped talks could continue to find a solution. Philips will contact VLSI today in a bid to re-open communications.
VLSI chairman and CEO Alfred Stein said it was unfortunate that Philips had declined to participate in the process. He believed that, by their participation, Philips would recognize that their offer did not reflect the strong business potential of VLSI. By remaining outside of VLSIÆs process, Philips may continue to make inaccurate assumptions about VLSIÆs business, he said.
With the VLSI share price at $19.30, Philips $17 a share offer is already history. Unless Philips can get back into the talks with VLSI, it could soon be faced with higher rival bids and not even be aware of the basis on which they were calculated.
