3DFX Acquired by NVIDIA

NVIDIA today announced that they will acquire 3DFX. Obviously this leaves those of us with 3DFX cards a bit confused about what the future holds. I truly prefer the sharpness of the visuals in Glide over anything else. Of all the already-announced simulations coming soon the one I am most curious about is NASCAR Racing 4, whether it will still support what might be a dying technology.

Press statement:

NVIDIA To Acquire 3dfx Core Graphics Assets

SANTA CLARA, CA – DECEMBER 15, 2000 – NVIDIA® Corporation (Nasdaq: NVDA) today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire certain graphics related assets of 3dfx Interactive (Nasdaq: TDFX), a pioneer and a recognized leader in graphics technology. These graphics related assets include, but are not limited to, patents, pending patent applications, trademarks, brand names, and chip inventory related to the graphics business of 3dfx. In addition, 3dfx and NVIDIA have agreed to stay the patent infringement litigation between them through the closing of the transaction, at which time it will be jointly dismissed with prejudice.

Under the terms of the agreement, NVIDIA will pay to 3dfx a total consideration of $70 million in cash and 1 million shares of common stock. The asset acquisition has been approved by the board of directors of each company and is subject to 3dfx shareholder approval, the satisfaction of regulatory requirements and other customary closing conditions. This acquisition will be accounted for as a purchase and is expected to be complete in the first quarter of NVIDIA’s fiscal year 2002.

Founded in 1994, 3dfx was an early pioneer in the 3D graphics industry and has been recognized for its ability to bring some of the world’s finest games, educational content, interactive entertainment and media-rich business applications to life.

NVIDIA executives will conduct a conference call on Monday, December 18, 2000 at 7:00AM, Pacific Time. The conference call number is 212-231-6017, reservation number 17310062. A recorded playback of the conference call will be available through Wednesday, December 20, 2000. The call-in number for the replay is 800-633-8284 (US), 858-812-6440 (International), (passcode: 17310062). A live webcast (listen-only mode) of the conference call will be available at http://www.nvidia.com/Company/InvestorRelations; at http://www.streetevents.com; and at http://www.bestcalls.com. You must have a compatible media player installed on your computer in order to listen to the webcast. You may download a media player for free at the sites listed above.

About NVIDIA
NVIDIA Corporation (Nasdaq: NVDA), based in Santa Clara, California., is the global leader in advanced graphics and multimedia processing technology for the consumer and professional computing markets. Its 2D, 3D, video and multimedia capabilities make NVIDIA one of the premier semiconductor companies in the world. NVIDIA offers a wide range of products and services, delivering superior performance and crisp visual quality for PC-based applications such as manufacturing, science, e-business, entertainment, and education.