Qualcomm signs CDMA deal with Taiwan firm

Shares of Qualcomm (Nasdaq: QCOM) rose in afterhours trading after the company announced a licensing deal with Taiwan's biggest maker of cordless phones.

After market close Tuesday, Qualcomm announced it signed a multimillion dollar contract to license its CDMA technology to Taipei-based Cherish Telecom. The deal lets Cherish make devices with cdmaOne, cdma2000 and High Data Rate capabilities. Qualcomm would get royalties.

Qualcomm's stock rose to 55 1/2 in afterhours activity on the Island electronic communications network. The stock closed Tuesday's regular trading at 53, down 1 7/8 for the session.

"We expect Cherish Telecom to make significant contributions to the rapidly expanding CDMA marketplace," said Marvin Blecker, Qualcomm's senior vice president of technology transfer.

Cherish also plans to make wireless devices based on second generation GSM standards. The company expects to close OEM deals in September with telecom providers in Korea, Japan and Europe.

Earlier Tuesday, Qualcomm said it would license CDMA technology to another Taiwanese electronics manufacturer, First International Computer Group.>