August 15, 1999 23:15
Broadcom unveils new "10-in-1" networking chip
IRVINE, Calif., Aug 15 (Reuters) - Broadcom Corp. , a maker of communications chips, said on Sunday it was unveiling a new networking chip that can perform the work of up to 10 separate chips.
The new StrataSwitch chip, the first product to come out of Broadcom's acquisition this year of Maverick Networks, was a big step towards speeding delivery of different types of data over a network, the company said.
"Broadcom now offers a complete range of silicon solutions for its enterprise and public customers," Chief Executive Officer Henry Nicholas said in a statement.
"The StrataSwitch represents a critical milestone on our larger strategic roadmap aimed at enabling the convergence of voice, video and data over existing public and private networks," Nicholas said.
Maverick is one of several companies Broadcom has snapped up in recent months as it moves to build a strong position in the network chip industry. In its latest acquisition, the company last week bought AltoCom, a maker of software-based modems, for $180 million in stock.
Packing 60 million transistors, Broadcom said its new chip incorporated technology on one chip that previously would have taken several chips.
"What this represents is basically the world's first true switching system on a single chip," said Marty Colombatto, the general manager of Broadcom's networking business unit.
In addition, the chip is capable of analyzing the content of the information that streams through it, assigning a higher delivery priority to video and voice packets, Colombattao said.
Samples of the chip have been sent out to Broadcom partners and the company expected to roll the product out commercially by the end of the year.
The potential market for the new chip would be around $300 million a year based on projected sales of networking chips for the year 2000, Colombatto said. Shares in Broadcom rose $6.69 to close at $120.06 on the Nasdaq trading system on Friday.
newsalert.com
Current revenues are $96.3 million. Add an additional $300 million a year. Whoa. :o
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