Applied Buys Brooks Software for $125M

By Colleen Taylor -- Electronic News, 11/6/2006

Brooks Automation Inc. has signed a deal to divest and sell its software division, Brooks Software, to Applied Materials Inc.

Under the terms of the definitive agreement, which was approved by the board of directors of both companies, Applied Materials will pay Brooks Automation $125 million in cash for the Brooks Software Division. Completion of the transaction is subject to applicable regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

"For Brooks Automation this transaction will further strengthen our balance sheet and allow us to focus more on our core semiconductor-related hardware businesses," Edward C. Grady, Brooks Automation's president and CEO, said in a statement.

The purchase comes on the heels of another major announcement by Applied that it will enter the burgeoning solar photovoltaic (PV) equipment market. Applied's heavy investment into the effort indicates that the company's foray into the solar realm seems to be for the long haul: in May, Applied forked over a whopping $464 million to acquire Applied Films, a supplier of thin film deposition equipment used in FPD manufacturing that enabled Applied to expand into the solar cell industry.