Handset design house Indigo Mobile expected to close by year-end

Taiwan-based handset design house Indigo Mobile Technologies, which has investments from MediaTek and Foxconn Electronics, is likely to close its doors by the end of the year due to weak performance, according to industry sources.

The recent global financial crisis and the continuing expansion of handset EMS and ODM firms have resulted in a slower-than-expected business at Indigo, discouraging MediaTek and Foxconn from committing additional capital into the handset design house, the sources explained.

The top executives of Indigo have already contacted a number of potential investors, probing the possibility of either pouring funds into the ailing company or taking up its management, said the sources, noting that Pegatron Technology is likely to take up Indigo's assets and part of its R&D team.