SUNNYVALE, Calif., April 30 -- Finisar Corp. announced yesterday it will acquire the fiber optics business unit of Infineon Technologies AG, of Munich, for 135 million shares of stock, valued at $263 million. Following the transaction, Infineon will hold a 38 percent equity interest in Finisar. Finisar President and CEO Jerry Rawls and Frank Levinson, chairman and CTO -- who own 15 percent of the shares -- entered into a voting right agreement with Infineon that they will vote their shares in favor of the transaction. The companies said the acquisition involves the transfer of Infineon's fiber optic development, manufacturing and certain marketing activities and approximately 1200 employees. The Infineon Fiber Optics Business Unit develops, manufactures and markets a wide variety of fiber optic datacom and telecom modules supporting common MSA standards, BIDI components that allow bi-directional transmission on a single fiber for fiber-to-the-home applications (FTTH) and plastic optical fiber components that are used in automotive applications, specifically for media and safety systems. "This combination will be an important step in the ongoing consolidation of the fiber optic market," said Thomas Seifert, CEO of Infineon's Wireline Communications Business Group. Jerry Rawls, Finisar's President and CEO, said, "This acquisition will add important new product and technology platforms which should strengthen our position in our core markets as well as help us to diversify our revenue base in terms of end markets, customers and distribution channels. About 40 percent of Infineon's business is in markets where we currently don't compete, including the automotive industry and emerging FTTH opportunity." Pending customary regulatory approvals and the approval of Finisar's shareholders, the transaction is expected to close in the third calendar quarter of this year. Assets to be transferred in the transaction include Infineon Fiber Optics GmbH, with locations in Berlin, Munich and Regensburg, Germany. Manufacturing facilities in Trutnov (Czech Republic), development and marketing activities in Longmont and San Jose, Calif., and Infineon's stake in the ParoLink joint venture with UEC in Taiwan will be transferred. Finisar will also acquire a portfolio of approximately 450 patents and patent applications. Infineon is expected to continue to be a strategic supplier of integrated circuit chips to the combined entity. Thomas Seifert, CEO of Infineon's Wireline Communications Business Group, is expected to join the Finisar board of directors. For more information, visit: www.finisar.com