Qualcomm opts not to break up, despite profit drop

Breaking Qualcomm up is not the best way to turn its performance around, the company's board has decided.

Qualcomm designs and makes chips, primarily for the booming smartphone and connected devices markets. But in July the company reported lackluster results for the three months to June 28, with a 14 percent year-on-year decline in revenue and 47 percent drop in net profit.

CEO Steve Mollenkopf said then that he planned on "right-sizing" the company's cost structure -- a phrase that turned out to mean laying off more than one employee in seven. He also engaged external advisors to review the company's corporate structure and look at whether splitting the company up would increase its value.

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