Passing of the Baton at Qualcomm (QCOM, BRCM, NOK)

There is a rather large retirement in the world of technology today.  It may be more of a formality than anything, but Paul Jacobs now chairman of  Qualcomm Incorporated (Nasdaq: QCOM).  He is replacing his father,  Dr. Irwin Jacobs, co-founder and CEO from the founding of Qualcomm in 1985.

Irwin Jacobs will remain on the board of directors.  The transition is effective immediately.

This will come as a relief to some who had wondered when this would occur, but for some of the old guard investors it puts the company’s management in Jacobs the Younger’s hands.  His tenure has not been without challenges including lawsuits involving Broadcom Corp. (NASDAQ: BRCM) and with Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK).  But that is all irrelevant now.

Irwin Jacobs is about 75 years old, while Paul is about 46 years old.

JON C. OGG
MARCH 3, 2009