The U.S. computer giant Apple confirmed the acquisition of its third Israeli high-tech startup, LinX Imaging, for $20 million, which creates tiny cameras for telephones & tablets.
By Ilan Gattegno & Israel Hayom Staff
U.S. computer giant Apple has acquired LinX Imaging, an Israeli company that produces tiny camera modules for telephones and tablet devices. The Wall Street Journal quoted sources close to the deal who said that Apple paid $20 million for the Israeli firm.
LinX Imaging’s high-tech camera components – Photo: Linximaging.com/screenshot
LinX creates cameras that are smaller than any on the market today and can photograph multiple objects at once. Moreover, the company website says, LinX technology lets users create 3D images and refocus an image after the picture has been taken, providing 3D object modeling and real-time background replacement, a feature that can be used in video calls.
The TechCrunch blog covered the purchase and speculated that Apple could use the camera technology in devices such as the MacBook.
An Apple spokesperson confirmed the acquisition, but told the Wall Street Journal that “Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans.”
LinX Imaging is the third Israeli company Apple has acquired. The company bought Anobit, a flash memory developer, in 2012 for $390 million, and PrimeSense, which develops movement sensors, for $300 million in 2013.
Apple CEO Tim Cook visited Israel in February for the inauguration of Apple’s Herzliya headquarters and told President Reuven Rivlin that Apple had “enormous admiration for Israel, not just as an important ally for the U.S., but as a place to do business.”
View original Israel Hayom publication at: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=24829
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