In a news conference on February 1, 2010, at the Seoul Grand Hyatt Hotel Paul Jacobs announced that Qualcomm is the world's best company in telecommunications chip industry and will invest US$4 million into a local chipmaker, PULSUS Technologies. In Cooperation with Korean industry, academic and governmental institutions, Qualcomm’s planned R&D center will expand research collaborations with Korean organizations and focus on advances in next generation mobile communication technology.
PULSUS Technologies is a leading developer of Digital Pulse Modulation Amplifier (DPMA) and has over 60 percent of the market share. Qualcomm was particularly interested in PULSUS's SoC (System-on-Chip) technology that was developed for the first time in 2003, and digital audio standard for next-generation cell phones. The Ministry of Knowledge Economy and KOTRA used Global Alliance Project Series (GAPS) program to get Qualcomm's investment. GAP is an investment attracting program that introduces Korean companies to global companies, and GAPS has been operating it since last year.
Paul Jacobs, Chairman of Qualcomm said, "I'm very happy that I have invested into an excellent Korean venture company, and I hope that this investment will be a foundation for PULSUS to advance in the international market." He went on to say, "It is very meaningful for Qualcomm to establish the R&D center in Korea, and I will continue to contribute to the Korean IT industry."
Cho Hwan-eik, President of KOTRA said, "Recently, global companies begin to acknowledge Korean companies' technology." He continued, "KOTRA will support domestic companies consistently, and will prepare policies for their growth."
