Ericsson to buy antenna business from Kathrein

Ericsson announced it will acquire antenna and filters business from Kathrein, as part of the strategy to focus on 5G antenna technology.
Ericsson Radio basestation antennasKathrein’s antenna and filters business division with around 4,000 professionals based in more than 20 locations, including Germany, Romania, the U.S., Mexico and China will be part of Ericsson.

Kathrein reported EUR 270 million revenues from antenna and filters business for mobile networks in 2018. The transaction is expected to close in third quarter 2019.

Fredrik Jejdling, head of Business Area Networks, Ericsson, said: “Strengthening our in-house antenna competence is another important step in our Networks portfolio strategy.”

Ericsson will be adding the antenna and filters business as a separate unit in Business Area Networks and will be reported in Segment Networks, with a positive contribution to 2020 profitability targets.

The acquisition of the antenna business will assist Ericsson to expand its Ericsson Radio System portfolio with new products.

Kathrein, with headquarters in Rosenheim, Germany, founded in 1919, is a leading provider of antenna and filter technologies and is an existing Ericsson supplier. The antenna and filters business has experience in antenna design and research, coupled with a strong IPR portfolio.