Microchip maker Broadcom has cut its bid for Qualcomm by 4% to $117 billion as it objected to Qualcomm's decision to raise its own bid for NXP Semiconductors to $44 billion.

Qualcomm and Broadcom plan to meet on Wednesday to talk about the latter's $121 billion acquisition offer, the first time the semiconductor companies will discuss the potential deal, people familiar with the matter said.

Broadcom raised its bid for Qualcomm to about $121 billion, seeking to force the rival chipmaker to the negotiating table after Qualcomm rejected an earlier offer as too low.

Broadcom plans to unveil a new approximately $120 billion offer for Qualcomm on Monday, aiming to ratchet up pressure on its US semiconductor peer to engage in negotiations, people familiar with the matter said on Sunday.

Qualcomm has confirmed receipt of Broadcom's nomination of a slate of candidates to replace Qualcomm's existing board of directors at the company's 2018 annual meeting of stockholders.

Chipmaker Broadcom is considering raising its offer to buy rival Qualcomm by offering more of its own stock, following consultation with several of Qualcomm's top shareholders, according to people familiar with the matter.

Qualcomm investors want at least US$10 more than the US$70-a-share Broadcom is offering. If history is any guide, they might get partway there.

Qualcomm is preparing to fend off an unsolicited $100 billion takeover bid from Broadcom Ltd., arguing it undervalues the company, according to people familiar with the plans.

KeyBanc's John Vinh expects Broadcom will gain 40% more worth of chips in the new iPhone relative to its place in past models - 8 chips up from 5.

Broadcom has introduced Max WiFi, the industry's first family of connectivity solutions using the next Wi-Fi standard, 802.11ax.

Four suitors have come forward for Toshiba's cash-cow memory chip unit. But with aggrieved business partner Western Digital raising objections, the company likely will face many twists and turns before completing the deal that is so crucial to its survival.

Struggling Toshiba's planned semiconductor business sell-off has attracted bids of more than JPY2 trillion ($18.1 billion) from two foreign companies.

US-based private-equity firm Silver Lake Partners and US-based chipmaker Broadcom apparently tendered a roughly JPY2 trillion (US$17.9 billion) bid. That is on the high end of estimates of the memory business' value.

One of a handful of startups aiming to attack Broadcom's dominance in Ethernet switching emerges from stealth mode this week. Nephos spun out of Taiwan's Mediatek and will push packaging technology from TSMC to a new level.

An upcoming Apple iPhone is likely to have a customized wireless charging system made with Broadcom, according to JPMorgan analyst Harlan Sur.

Chipmaker Broadcom is nearing a deal to acquire network gear maker Brocade Communications Systems Inc in a deal that could be announced later this week, people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

With the help of Apple's iPhone 7 ramp and a big increase in the amount of revenue the company will get from each iPhone, Broadcom's results and guidance were a little better than analysts forecast.

RBC Capital analyst Amit Daryanani sees pressure on prices for suppliers, and thinks companies that have something of a "monopoly" should survive this better than others, in particular Broadcom and Analog Devices.

TJ Rodgers, one of the most prominent leaders of the microchip industry, plans to step down as chief executive of Cypress Semiconductor Corp after nearly 34 years running the company he founded.

Chipmaker Broadcom, the company created following the merger of Avago and Broadcom, said it would cut about 1,900 jobs globally across its businesses.

US chipmakers will feel the sting of the US government's decision to restrict technology exports to China's ZTE. Qualcomm and Intel are both suppliers to ZTE, as is Singapore's Broadcom.

European antitrust regulators cleared on Monday Avago Technologies planned US$37 billion takeover of rival chipmaker Broadcom without conditions.

The Japanese company's Synergy Platform joins similar efforts by such vendors as Intel, ARM, Broadcom and MediaTek.

The proximate source of a lot of this pressure is China, say SouthBay Economics' Andrew Zatlin. Semiconductors are suffering a fallout stemming from China's slowing economy just like other commodities have.

Chip maker Avago Technologies is in advanced talks to buy rival Broadcom in a deal worth about US$35 billion, the latest in a wave of takeovers for the companies that supply parts to power smartphones, tablets and other gadgets.

Broadcom has reported solid results for the first quarter of 2015, with revenue driven by high-end smartphone and broadband access markets.

A major gripe about smartwatches is that the battery on most devices lasts only about a day. Looking to address that problem, both Broadcom and Texas Instruments have unveiled new platforms for their chips that are designed to help smartwatches and other small devices sip power instead of chug it.

Among big changes in the works are China Mobile's shift in procurement policy from five-mode smartphones to three-mode models, and big plans among Chinese apps processor vendors to embrace connectivity (WiFi and Bluetooth Low Energy).

This is the first Android smartwatch based on the Broadcom system-on-chip (SoC) platform which includes a 1.2GHz Quad-core ARM Cortex A7 processor (BCM23550), an improved GPS and Sensor processing SOC (BCM47531) capable of simultaneously tracking five satellite systems (GPS, GLONASS, QZSS, SBAS, and BeiDou), the now popular Wi-Fi/BT/NFC/FM quad-combo connectivity chip (BCM43341), and a highly integrated power management IC (BCM59054).

Broadcom has announced it is exploring strategic alternatives for its cellular baseband business, including a potential sale or wind-down.

Broadcom has announced that Datang Mobile, a core subsidiary of the Datang Telecom Technology and Industry Group, has selected Broadcom's dual-mode TD-SCDMA/TD-LTE system-on-chip (SoC) to develop a new family of enterprise and residential small cell solutions.

Broadcom fell after the company forecast lower fourth-quarter revenue than analysts estimated and said it's cutting as many as 1,150 jobs as demand slows for chips that connect mobile phones to the Internet.

Chipmakers including Broadcom and Renesas Electronics are ramping up in-car entertainment with faster processors and networks for wireless HD movies and navigation, aiming to keep drivers informed and passengers entertained.

Broadcom has announced a definitive agreement to acquire LTE-related assets from affiliates of Renesas Electronics.

Taiwan's TSMC will produce the LG-designed chips with using a finer 28-nanometer processing technology.

The BCM4335 is now sampling to Broadcom's early access customers, with full production expected in the first quarter of 2013.

Broadcom President and CEO Scott McGregor said he doesn't expect the CSR technology to be a technical threat to Broadcom's technology. He said Samsung is more likely to use resulting chips for lower-end products, which could impact some of Samsung's suppliers in Taiwan.