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How Touch ID thwarted Motorola's plans to incorporate fingerprint technology on the Nexus 6
Apple's 2012 acquisition of the fingerprint technology firm AuthenTec reportedly thwarted Motorola's plans to incorporate fingerprint recognition into the Nexus 6. The news comes straight from former Motorola Mobility CEO Dennis Woodside who explained as much during a recent interview with The Telegraph. Indeed, the 6-inch Nexus 6, he can now admit, was stymied by just one of those big players. A dimple on the back that helps users hold the device should, in fact, have been rather more sophisticated. "The secret behind that is that it was supposed to be fingerprint recognition, and Apple bought the best supplier. So the second best supplier was the only one available to everyone else in the industry and they weren't there yet," says Woodside. Nonetheless, he adds, the addition of fingerprint recognition, "wouldn't have made that big a difference. Interestingly enough, if one goes back and looks at the inside story behind Apple's acquisition of AuthenTec, one finds that that the US$356 million purchase was quite the frenzied affair. Negotiations between Apple and the Australian-based AuthenTec began in earnest in February 2012 with Apple making it clear that it wanted to seal the deal as quickly as possible. In somewhat classic Apple negotiating fashion, the folks in Cupertino indicated that they were dead serious about the deal and had no interest in getting into a protracted bidding war. As a result, Apple said that if AuthenTec wanted to start soliciting bids from other major tech players, it would rescind its offer. Apple and AuthenTec ultimately inked a deal in July of 2012. A little more than a year later, Touch ID was introduced with the iPhone 5s. Since then, no company has yet been able to implement a fingerprint authorization scheme that can match the reliability and ease of use of Touch ID.
AuthenTec co-founder talks Touch ID, shows off early prototypes of fingerprint-authorization device
Without question, the flagship feature on Apple's iPhone 5s is Touch ID. Conveniently located beneath the home button, Apple's Touch ID is inconspicuous and provides a quick and seamless way for users to protect their device without having to enter in a passcode every five minutes. The technology Touch ID is based on, however, didn't always come in such a small package. In fact, early prototype devices showcasing the technology were quite large. Apple's Touch ID is based on technology the company acquired when it purchased AuthenTec for about US$356 million in 2012. Earlier this week, AuthenTec co-founder F. Scott Moody delivered a speech at North Carolina State University -- his alma mater -- where he talked about the technology's origins and its subsequent acquisition by Apple. AppleInsider was able to attend the talk, relaying a number of interesting tidbits about the technology that powers Apple's Touch ID. Again, early prototypes housing AuthenTec's fingerprint authorization technology were extremely large, as evidenced by the photo below. Over time, however, AuthenTec was able to significantly shrink all the necessary components down into a much more practical and commercially viable package. Another interesting nugget of information is that AuthenTec, in refining its fingerprint technology, consulted with a number of dermatologists in an effort to get the feature working as flawlessly as possible. AppleInsider adds: Once the early technology and size issues were resolved, the AuthenTec team worked to make the sensor even more embeddable and sleek. Along the way, he said, there was a lot of trial and error and failed experiments, but he and his team learned from each of them as they refined their technology. When AuthenTec came out with their final product, the company generated interest from a number of customers, including Apple, Motorola and Fujitsu. Apple, in particular, "ate it up," Moody said, and eventually bought the entire company in 2012 for $356 million. With respect to Apple's immense interest in the technology, remember that Apple, back in August of 2012, filed a PREM14A proxy statement with the SEC, thereby providing a number of details surrounding the AuthenTec acquisition. Specifically, the proxy statement shows that Apple wanted to strike a deal as quickly as possible. During the negotiation process, for example, Apple indicated to AuthenTec that it would not participate in a bidding war for the technology with other companies. What's more, Apple informed AuthenTec that it would rescind its offer if the company "decided to solicit alternative acquisition proposals..." The statement also reads in part: Representatives of Apple then outlined a proposed transaction structure and the process and timeline for negotiating the transaction. Representatives of Apple also noted Apple's desire to proceed quickly due to its product plans and ongoing engineering efforts. If you're uber-curious about the process involved in the AuthenTec acquisition, The Next Web has a nice article detailing all of the highlights from Apple's proxy statement over here.
Daily Update for July 27, 2012
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Apple ready to buy fingerprint sensor maker AuthenTec
Reuters reports today that Apple is purchasing chipmaker AuthenTec in a deal worth about US$356 million. AuthenTec makes fingerprint sensor chips that are used in computers made by Lenovo, Fujitsu, and Dell, and also makes security software and chips for mobile phones that are licensed to companies like Samsung. The company also developed a downloadable digital rights management solution that is used on the iPhone and iPad to authenticate HBO GO. In addition to those products, AuthenTec also produces chips for near-field communication (NFC), a technology that is used for secure wireless transactions. NFC payment capabilities are already built in to some Android phones via Google Wallet, and the technology is expected to make an appearance in a future iPhone (even if it's not the next iPhone). As with all such acquisitions made by Apple, these capabilities don't necessarily indicate that a specific technology is going to appear in Apple products in the near term. However, Apple's acquisitions strategy is aimed at helping the company control technologies that it sees as essential to its business, so there's something in AuthenTec's portfolio or someone among its personnel that's key to Apple's plans. Larry Dignan at ZDnet suggests that AuthenTec's purchase is a move to fend off Samsung and to enhance Apple's attractiveness in the enterprise space, where many companies are moving to a bring your own device (BYOD) model. Past Apple acquisitions have included Israeli memory specialist Anobit, App Store search optimizer Chomp, and semiconductor firms Intrinsity and PA Semi. #next_pages_container { width: 5px; hight: 5px; position: absolute; top: -100px; left: -100px; z-index: 2147483647 !important; }
Apple buying fingerprint sensor maker AuthenTec for $356 million
Sure the financials announced this week weren't as exceptional as some we've seen from the company, but Apple's still clearly in a buying mood. The company's apparently doing a little security shopping, picking up AuthenTec for $356 million, according to the mobile and network security firm. AuthenTec's in the business of content and data protection, including things like fingerprint sensors and contactless payment. Seems Apple's looking to get into that business too. AuthenTec's already worked with a number of high profile hardware makers, such as Samsung, Lenovo, LG, Nokia and Motorola.
