Global Technology Leaders Collaborate to Make Wireless Power as Commonplace as WiFi

SAN JOSE, Calif. and SOMERSET, N.J., Jan. 16, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Flextronics (NASDAQ: FLEX) and Powermat Technologies today announced a strategic agreement aimed at bringing state-of-the-art wireless power to electronics of all kinds, and to consumers worldwide.

As a pioneer and leader of the fast-growing wireless power industry, Powermat technologies have already been adopted by major global players including AT&T General Motors, Procter & Gamble, and Starbucks. The Power Matters Alliance (PMA) – the world's fastest growing wireless power standard and ecosystem – has also incorporated Powermat's technology as a basis for its own open standard.

Flextronics is one of the most respected global providers of end-to-end supply chain solutions for electronics; designing and manufacturing devices used by billions of consumers.  Its power supply division, Flextronics Power, is a leader in the mobile charging industry and will fully leverage their expertise in research, development, manufacturing and IP to enable innovative wireless power for smartphones, tablets, wearable electronics, notebooks and other applications.

"We have concluded that wireless power is the next big wave in mobility.  Starting with smart phones and tablets, this new technology will eventually transform how people charge electronics of all kinds," said Chris Cook, president of Flextronics Power. "We plan to bring our unmatched scale and know how to ensure PMA technology is ramped-up, costed-down, and rolled out in a way that brings excellent value to both customers and end users."

The companies plan to rapidly leverage the synergies across their organizations, driving miniaturization, cost-reduction, efficiency and integration into both existing and new product platforms. 

"Flextronics is the technology and market-share leader for wired mobile chargers.  Powermat enjoys a similar leadership position in the fast-growing, but currently fragmented, wireless charging space," said Stuart Robinson, Director of the Strategy Analytics Handset Component Technologies service.  "This alliance may be exactly what is needed to finally bring standardised wireless power benefits to billions of products and customers."

Under the terms of the agreement, Flextronics has made a strategic investment in Powermat, and the parties will collaborate closely on the design, manufacturing and go-to-market of wireless charging solutions for mobile OEMs.

"Staying powered is the number one concern for mobile consumers, and the data shows that wireless power resolves this at home, in the car and while refreshing at popular coffee shops and restaurants," said Ran Poliakine, CEO of Powermat Technologies.  "The next stage is to deliver this technology to OEMs and through them to consumers at scale, and this is exactly what our partnership with Flextronics promises to do.  There is no one better placed to migrate the world's mobile chargers from wired to wireless!"

About Flextronics
Flextronics is a leading end-to-end supply chain solutions company that delivers design, engineering, manufacturing and logistics services to a range of industries and end-markets, including data networking, telecom, enterprise computing and storage, industrial, capital equipment, appliances, automation, medical, automotive, aerospace and defense, energy, mobile, computing and other electronic product categories. Flextronics is an industry leader with $24 billion in sales, generated from helping its customers' design, build, ship, and service their products through an unparalleled network of facilities in more than 30 countries and across four continents.  For more information, visit www.flextronics.com or follow us on Twitter @flextronics.

About Flextronics Power
Flextronics Power is part of Flextronics and develops innovative technologies and transforms them into valuable solutions that power the mobile revolution across many growing product segments including smartphone, tablet, notebook, server, storage and networking applications.  For more information, visit www.flextronics.com or follow us on Twitter @flextronics.

About Powermat Technologies
Powermat is the pioneer and leader of the wireless power industry. Enjoyed by millions of consumers worldwide, Powermat's technology was formally adopted by the PMA, and is the platform of choice for such global leaders as Duracell, General Motors, AT&T and Starbucks. Please find out more at www.powermat.com.

SOURCE Powermat Technologies