Texas Instruments sheds 1,700 jobs worldwide

Texas Instruments is slashing 1,700 jobs, or about 5 percent of its global workforce as the company decides to focus on embedded systems, and not venture into smartphone chip manufacturing.

The restructuring costs will see it hit with a US$325 million charge in the current quarter, but it expects to reap annualized savings of US$450 million by the end of 2013, according to a statement by the company on Wednesday.

The company had a "great opportunity" to reshape their open multimedia application platform (OMAP) processors and wireless connectivity product lines to concentrate on embedded markets, Greg Delagi, senior vice president of embedded processing at Texas Instruments, noted in the statement.

The new embedded applications have gained momentum and a broad set of customers so the company has decided to accelerate their efforts in these areas, Delagi explained.

"These job reductions are something we do with a heavy heart because they impact people we care deeply about. We will work closely with all employees affected by these changes to provide a range of assistance related to compensation, benefits and job search," he said.

The job cuts come after Texas Instruments announced last month it will be leaving the smartphone chip business, citing increased costs of patent licensing in the sector, as well as Apple and Samsung's dominant position. Instead, the company will focus on using its own chip technology and selling it to the automotive sector and the embedded markets.