ARM被400億美元賣給Nvidia公司了!
這則新聞引發(fā)了全球半導體行業(yè)的普遍關注，這主要源于ARM的商業(yè)模式與ARM處理器架構在全球的廣泛應用性。ARM作為一家處理器架構IP提供商，客戶遍及全球多個國家，三星、蘋果、華為等半導體芯片設計公司都是ARM的授權客戶，他們很多都是此次收購案購買方Nvidia的競爭對手。這就好比，一個運動員買斷了他所從事的運動賽事的裁判，該運動員信誓旦旦地保證，將在今后的運動比賽中讓這名裁判保持中立。
作為ARM的聯合創(chuàng)始人，早在收購案之初，赫爾曼·豪瑟(Hermann Hauser)博士就發(fā)出警告，指出Nvidia收購ARM將是將是一場“災難”。在Nvidia和軟銀官宣收購協(xié)議之后，赫爾曼·豪瑟(Hermann Hauser)博士激動回應，直接發(fā)表公開信，請求政府拯救Arm，并建立了一個“Save Arm”的網站，呼吁更多人參與“救救Arm”的簽名請愿計劃。
救救ARM官網截圖
在信中，赫爾曼·豪瑟(Hermann Hauser)博士指出，將Arm出售給Nvidia將破壞Arm的商業(yè)模式的基礎，從長遠來看，這是國家經濟主權的問題。他指出“由于美國總統(tǒng)在與中國的貿易戰(zhàn)中武器化了技術主導地位，因此除非英國擁有自己的討價還價武器，否則英國將成為附帶損害”，“主權曾經主要是一個地理問題，但是現在經濟主權同樣重要。把英國最強大的貿易武器交給美國，正使英國成為美國的附庸國?！?/strong>
以下是赫爾曼·豪瑟(Hermann Hauser)博士的公開信(譯文來自百度翻譯)。
尊敬的首相：
作為Arm的創(chuàng)始人之一，我非常關注Arm向Nvidia出售的提議。我在劍橋的許多同事也有同樣的擔憂，劍橋是英國金融和電子行業(yè)，他們都在共同簽署這封信。
首先，我們關心的是曼徹斯特的貝爾斯菲爾德和謝菲爾德的數千名員工。當總部遷往美國時，這將不可避免地導致英國失業(yè)和失去影響力，正如卡夫收購吉百利時所看到的那樣。
其次，將Arm出售給Nvidia將破壞Arm商業(yè)模式的基礎，Arm的商業(yè)模式將成為半導體行業(yè)的瑞士，與500多家被許可方進行公平的交易。其中大部分是英偉達的競爭對手。其中包括許多英國公司。相反的保證應具有法律約束力。
第三，也是最重要的長期問題，這是一個國家經濟主權問題：
Arm是英國僅存的一家科技公司，在手機微處理器領域占據主導地位。它的市場份額超過95%。英國受到了美國技術主導地位的影響，這些公司包括谷歌(Google)、Facebook、亞馬遜(Amazon)、Netflix、蘋果(Apple)等。由于美國總統(tǒng)在與中國的貿易戰(zhàn)中把技術主導權武器化，除非英國擁有自己的貿易武器來討價還價，否則英國將成為附帶損害。Arm為蘋果、三星、索尼、華為以及世界上幾乎所有其他品牌的智能手機提供動力，因此可以對所有這些品牌施加影響。
出售給英偉達將意味著Arm將受到美國OFAC法規(guī)的約束。英國電子行業(yè)有數百家公司雇用數萬名在產品中使用武器的人。其中許多出口到包括中國在內的全球主要市場。他們都必須遵守美國海外資產控制辦公室的規(guī)定。
這使英國處于一種令人不快的境地，即允許向誰出售武器的決定權將在白宮而不是唐寧街。
主權過去主要是一個地理問題，但現在經濟主權同樣重要。把英國最強大的貿易武器交給美國，正使英國成為美國的附庸國。
要讓這項交易得以通過，必須具備三個條件。
它們都必須具有法律約束力，否則毫無用處：
為英國ARM雇員提供具有法律約束力的工作保障
具有法律約束力的協(xié)議，Nvidia不得獲得任何優(yōu)惠待遇比其他Arm許可證持有人。
英國必須獲得美國OFAC法規(guī)的豁免，以便保證英國公司能夠不受限制地使用我們自己的微處理器技術。
與出售給英偉達公司(Nvidia)相比，自然的選擇是在倫敦證券交易所(londonstockexchange)公開Arm，使其再次成為英國所有的公司，并獲得國家經濟安全的黃金股。由于你已經花了5億英鎊幫助OneWeb擺脫破產法第11章，這對英國來說可能沒有Arm那么重要，你可以花10-20億英鎊作為主要投資者，在倫敦證券交易所(London Stock Exchange)進行IPO，并獲得一份黃金股，這樣這個問題就不會再發(fā)生了。對于軟銀來說，IPO一直是獲得流動性的必經之路。
如果你不讓Arm再次成為一家英國公司，為國家經濟安全贏得黃金份額，歷史將記住你是一個在籌碼下跌時未能為國家利益采取行動的人。
謹上
Hermann Hauser FRS博士，KBE
公開信原文：
Dear Prime Minister,
As one of the founders of Arm I am extremely concerned about the proposed sale of Arm to Nvidia. This concern is shared by many of my colleagues in Cambridge, the UK financial and electronics industry who are all co-signing this letter.
Firstly, we are concerned about the impact on jobs in Cambridge, Manchester, Belfast, Glasgow, Sheffield and Warwick where thousands of Arm employees work. When the headquarters move to the US this will inevitably lead to the loss of jobs and influence in the UK as we have seen with the Cadbury takeover by Kraft.
Secondly, the sale of Arm to Nvidia will destroy the very basis of Arm’s business model which is to be the Switzerland of the semiconductor industry dealing in an even-handed way with its over 500 licensees. Most of them are Nvidia’s competitors. Among them are many UK companies. Assurances to the contrary should be legally binding.
Thirdly, and most importantly for the long term, it is an issue of national economic sovereignty:
Arm is the only remaining UK technology company, with a dominant position in mobile phone microprocessors. It has a market share of over 95%. The UK has suffered from American technology dominance by companies like Google, Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, Apple and others. As the American president has weaponised technology dominance in his trade war with China, the UK will become collateral damage unless it has its own trade weapons to bargain with. Arm powers the smartphones of Apple, Samsung, Sony, Huawei and practically every other brand in the world and therefore can exert influence on all of them.
A sale to Nvidia will mean that Arm becomes subject to the US OFAC regulations. There are hundreds of companies in the UK electronics industry employing tens of thousands of people who use ARMs in their products. Many of them export to major global markets including China. They will all have to comply with the US OFAC regulations.
This puts Britain in the invidious position that the decision about who Arm is allowed to sell to will be made in the White House and not in Downing Street.
Sovereignty used to be mainly a geographic issue, but now economic sovereignty is equally important. Surrendering UK’s most powerful trade weapon to the US is making Britain a US vassal state.
There are three conditions that are imperative for this deal to be allowed to go through.
They all have to be legally binding or they are useless:
Legally binding job guarantees for Arm employees in the UK
Legally binding agreement that Nvidia must not gain any preferential treatment over other Arm licensees.
Britain must get an exemption from the US OFAC regulation so that UK companies are guaranteed unfettered access to our own microprocessor technology.
The natural alternative to an Arm sale to Nvidia is to take Arm public on the London Stock Exchange and make it a British owned company again with a Golden Share for national economic security. As you have spent ￡500m to help OneWeb out of Chapter 11, which arguably is not as important to Britain as Arm, you could spend ￡1-2bn as the anchor investor for an IPO on the London Stock Exchange and get a Golden Share for it so that this problem cannot happen again. An IPO was always the declared route to liquidity for Softbank.
If you do not make Arm a British owned company again with a Golden Share for national economic security, history will remember you as the person who, when the chips are down, failed to act in the national interest.
Yours sincerely
Dr Hermann Hauser FRS, KBE
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