Intel corrals DRAM makers in effort to spur Rambus chip production
Wish I could be a fly on the wall at this meeting...
ebnews.com
By Jack Robertson
Electronic Buyers' News
(05/17/00, 04:42:10 PM EST)
Intel Corp. has called what sources say is an emergency meeting to gauge the commitment of the industry's top DRAM suppliers to Direct Rambus DRAM memory production.
The two-day meeting, under way at Intel's Chandler, Ariz., campus, was called by high-level company executives, who are concerned that insufficient support for the new memory interface could undermine Intel's high-end microprocessors, which are designed to operate with the architecture.
According to sources, Intel is using the occasion to encourage DRAM suppliers to accelerate their transition from mainstay SDRAM to Direct RDRAM devices and guarantee adequate supplies of the memory ICs to support Intel's own chip plans.
Intel could not be reached immediately to comment on the meeting.
Joining a growing list of electronic components, DRAM supplies are slipping into a period of shortage due to a lack of manufacturing capacity across the industry. As reported earlier by EBN, some DRAM vendors have said firmer prices in the SDRAM sector may result in a slower shift to Direct RDRAM, which is more costly to produce and currently yields fewer chips per silicon wafer (see May 5 story).
There are some signs that the initial price premium associated with Rambus memory may be dissipating -- or at least that companies are temporarily willing to accept lower margins to move the architecture into the market.
While most industry analysts estimate Direct RDRAM prices are more than three times higher than SDRAM, memory-module maker Kingston Technology Co., Fountain Valley, Calif., cut its RIMM module prices earlier this month by 35% (see May 1 story).
Hewlett-Packard Co. and Dell Computer Corp. are both using Rambus memory and Intel 820 chipsets in their systems, with the Dell OptiPlex GX200 corporate PC selling for less than $1,200.
Still, after enduring a three-year recession in the IC market, several DRAM vendors have said privately that they will weigh their options carefully before moving suddenly profitable SDRAM manufacturing capacity to support Rambus.
That uncertainty has Intel worried, according to sources. The company is gearing up for the launch of its Willamette CPU and has publicly stated that the chip will support high-end 800-MHz Direct RDRAM. Industry sources close to Intel's development plans said the company is preparing to support slower-speed Rambus memory in the event that manufacturing yields are still low, but the availability of the interface remains integral to Intel's processor road map.
Concern over supplies of the chips prompted Intel to call top DRAM makers identified by sources as Hyundai MicroElectronics, Infineon Technologies, Micron Technology, NEC, Samsung Electronics, and Toshiba, to a meeting in Chandler that is euphemistically being called a Direct Rambus Plug-Fest.
While the proceedings are ongoing, sources said Intel is asking for specific production commitments from the companies. Sources added that at least some of the DRAM suppliers have agreed to maintain certain Direct RDRAM output levels, if they in turn receive a non-cancellation guarantee on each order placed.
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