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Intel reaps Havok for $110 million

Chipmaker snaps up the Irish developer of animation graphics technology found in dozens of video games and movies.

Tor Thorsen Special to CNET News
Tor is a freelance contributor to CNET Australia.
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Tor Thorsen
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Chipmaker Intel announced that it is acquiring Havok, the Irish developer of the widely used physics engine of the same name.

Financial terms of the deal were not initially disclosed. However, Reuters reported that Irish venture capital firm TVC Holdings estimated the deal's value at about $110 million. On Monday, TVC agreed to sell its 27 percent stake in Havok for about $21 million.

Based in Dublin, Havok has been crafting digital effects and game physics middleware for nine years, expanding its operations to San Antonio, Texas; San Francisco; Stockholm, Sweden; Kolkata, India; Munich, Germany; and Tokyo.

The company's technology can be found in dozens of video games including BioShock, Stranglehold, Half Life 2, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Crackdown, Lost Planet: Extreme Condition, MotorStorm and the forthcoming Halo 3. Films such as The Matrix, Troy and Poseidon have also used Havok technology.

"Havok is a proven leader in physics technology for gaming and digital content, and will become a key element of Intel's visual-computing and graphics efforts," Renee James, Intel vice president and general manager of its Software and Solutions Group, said in a statement. He added that Intel plans to use a hands-off management approach and allow Havok to conduct "business as usual."

The deal announcement came ahead of Intel's biggest technical conference, the Intel Developer Forum, in San Francisco this week. Intel is expected to expand on plans for next-generation chipmaking technology, commonly known as 45-nanometer manufacturing, and give more details on its forthcoming chip design change.

Tor Thorsen of GameSpot reported from San Francisco. Reuters contributed to this report.