Intel Corp, the worlds number 1 chipmaker, received antitrust approval from the European Union for its $16.7 billion offer to acquire Altera Corp. The EU said it didn’t see any competition issues for the transaction. Margrethe Vestager, the European Competition Commissioner, said “Our decision demonstrates that relevant deal can be swiftly approved if they raise no competition concern”. Intel is focusing on boosting its portfolio of higher margin chips used in data centers and further develop chips for cars, watches and other devices for the “Internet of Things”, a strategy which will be aided by the Altera deal.