SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Tessera Technologies Inc., which licenses miniaturization technology for electronic devices, said Monday that it has begun a search for a new CEO and plans to overhaul its board.
The moves come after weeks of pressure from investment firm Starboard Value LP, which owns about a 7.6 percent stake in the company, to fire CEO Robert Young and make drastic changes to the company's board.
The San Jose, Calif.-based company did not say when or why Young was leaving the company.
It also said it named Richard Hill as board chairman, effective immediately. He replaces Robert Boehlke, who will remain on the board until the company's annual shareholder meeting in May.
Hill joined the board in August. He served as CEO of Novellus Systems Inc. from 1993, and as its chairman from 1996, until the company was bought by Lam Research Corp. in June.
Tessera also named three new independent directors to the board and said it plans to nominate a slate of six independent directors at the upcoming annual meeting, including the three new directors and three existing directors.
Tessera said all of the board members, both old and new, are fully committed to boosting value for shareholders.
Starboard sent a letter to Tessera shareholders earlier this month saying that it wanted to overhaul the board and replace both Young and Boehlke. It proposed seven candidates for director positions, but none of them were included in the trio of new members announced by Tessera on Monday.
Its shares rose 36 cents, or 2 percent, to $18.54 in morning trading. Its shares have traded in a 52-week range of $12.77 to $18.91.
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