Rambus Brief: from Fred hager
We were quite pleased with Rambus' quarterly earnings report and we are
confident the company's plan to earn a large majority of their income from
royalties is being realized. Rambus continued to defer quite a bit of
revenue this quarter, as they have done in the past, and we admire their
conservative accounting. The company is basing their earnings on the
success of their technology and the new royalties from SDRAM. The other
income, which would have pushed their earnings per share well above $.09
was probably from settlements and was therefore deferred.
There has been quite a lot of talk and press surrounding Intel's CEO Craig
Barrett, and his statements regarding their relationship with Rambus. We
spoke with Intel yesterday and they acknowledged the statements, but stated
clearly that the relationship between Rambus and Intel has not changed, and
the company fully supports Rambus technology as the best solution for
high-end high-performance desktop and workstations. The comments made by
Barrett referred to older situations and the move Intel made to investigate
other, more cost effective solutions, upon requests from manufacturers, for
future versions of the Pentium 4.
While the press has latched onto this apparently "sensational" story, we
believe it does not indicate a preliminary initiative from Intel to move
away from Rambus. Intel may be feeling pressure from the memory
manufacturers concerning the Rambus patent claims and the litigation, but
Rambus has no other choice. Intel needs as much supply to meet current and
future demands, and Rambus' actions potentially jeopardize a steady stream.
Any interruption in Intel's supply chain would affect Intel's numbers. No
CEO likes that. What is perhaps an inconvenience for Intel is the future
for Rambus, their technology, and their shareholders. The rumors
surrounding:
Late on Friday, a rumor that indicated Intel was suing Rambus started
circulating. In speaking with Intel, they confirmed it was only a rumor.
The rumor, in our opinion, is ridiculous, and you can quote Fred on that.
The facts are as follows:
1. Intel fully supports Rambus
2. Intel believes Rambus is the best technology for the Pentium 4 and
offers the best possible performance for high-performance desktops and
workstations.
3. Rambus had nothing to do with Intel dropping Timna. |
