UPDATE 1-Intel Capital aims to seal 6 deals in India in '08
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KUALA LUMPUR, May 19 (Reuters) - Intel Capital, the venture capital investment arm of microchip giant Intel Corp (INTC.O), expects to close half a dozen deals in India this year, its regional head said on Monday.
"It's our most active market in the region," Sudheer Kuppam, managing director for Intel Capital in Southeast Asia, India, Japan and Australasia told reporters at a tech conference.
Intel Capital will announce eight to 10 deals worldwide in the first week of June, he added, without giving details.
In 2005, Intel set up a $250 million venture capital fund to help stimulate technological innovation in India and drive growth of the country's information technology (IT) industry.
Kuppam also said Intel Capital expected to seal two more investment deals by end-2008 in WiMAX Technology, which allows high-speed Internet access and file downloads from phones, laptops and mobile devices over greater distances.
"We are in discussions with multiple carriers in South Asia, Southeast Asia. We expect two more deals in Southeast Asia by year-end," said Kuppam, who is based in Bangalore.
Earlier this month, Intel Capital, Google Inc (GOOG.O), Comcast Corp (CMCSA.O), Time Warner Cable Inc (TWC.N), and Bright House Networks agreed to invest $3.2 billion into a new company to speed up deployment of the next-generation mobile WiMAX network.
Earlier on Monday, Intel Capital said it will pay 50 million ringgit ($15.5 million) for a minority stake in Malaysia-listed tech firm, Green Packet Bhd (GRNP.KL), which owns the license to roll out wireless broadband services in the country.
Green Packet was one of the winners for the four WiMAX licenses awarded by the Malaysian government last year. (Reporting by Jennifer Tan; Editing by Ramthan Hussain) (jennifer.tan@thomsonreuters.com; +603 2333 8033; Reuters Messaging: jennifer.tan.reuters.com@reuters.net) (US$ = 3.234 Malaysian ringgit)
