NVIDIA’s mobile chip business has never been very popular, but at one point many tablets were powered by the Tegra processor. The company continued improving the Tegra processor, and in an attempt to compete in a market where Qualcomm dominated because of their monopoly on 4G LTE models, NVIDIA purchased and started developing Icera mobile modems.

Unfortunately, the Tegra chips never took off in mobile devices. NVIDIA is still successful in businesses like computer parts and car systems, but no longer in the mobile market. So the Icera modem business has to go. By the end of the second quarter of this year, the business will be closed or sold off.

If NVIDIA needs modems, it plans to partner with a different company to source them. But the Icera business just wasn’t successful enough to keep around, and it’s a shame. More competition is always a good thing. Luckily, Samsung has once again pushed into the mobile chip market.