Qualcomm Technologies Inc. has agreed with third-party investors to establish its subsidiary Qualcomm Retail Solutions Inc. as an independent stand-alone company, according to a news release from Qualcomm Inc., the parent company of QTI.
According to parent company Qualcomm (Nasdaq: QCOM), at close, the third-party investors will assume a controlling interest in the new company, which will be renamed Gimbal Inc.
Qualcomm Technologies will remain a substantial investor in Gimbal Inc. All aspects of it, including the Gimbal technology platform, will be part of this transaction.
The third-party investors are funding the business via a new investment round that includes additional funding from QTI. The investor group consists of a mix of venture capital, strategic and individual investors, including the i-Hatch LBS Fund, which includes strategic corporate investors such as Zebra Technologies Corp. and AEG, Qualcomm said.
Gimbal technology is a context-aware proximity platform that originated in Qualcomm’s internal business incubation group before transitioning into QRS. Gimbal was created to help bring Qualcomm’s vision of a “digital sixth sense” to life, Qualcomm said. Gimbal includes support for geofencing and proximity beacons, as well as intuitive features for iOS and Android devices that enable brands, retailers and others to engage consumers with timely and personalized communications, according to the company.
The transaction is expected to close in May 2014.
