This is from the 12/15/97 10K
Target Markets and Applications
The high-speed interface technology Rambus has developed is applicable to
data transfer between most semiconductor chips. The Company has chosen to
concentrate the application of its technology on the interface between logic ICs
and memory devices because of the acute performance needs and the relevant
market sizes. While Rambus interface technology is useful in providing increased
memory bandwidth in any electronic system, the Company believes that the systems
which will best utilize the high bandwidth provided by current Rambus technology
are the relatively high-volume, low-cost systems in which the cost of the memory
subsystems represents a significant portion of the selling price. To date, the
principal applications for the Company's technology have been in the consumer
multimedia, PC multimedia and workstation multimedia markets. These areas
accounted for the sale of approximately $13,000, $11 million and $447 million of
Rambus ICs by Rambus licensees in calendar 1994, 1995 and 1996, respectively.
In November 1996, Rambus entered into a development and license contract
with Intel. The contract provides for the parties to cooperate in the
development of a specification for Direct Rambus next-generation 64 Mbit RDRAMs,
which will be targeted at the PC main memory market segment. The contract also
calls for Intel to use reasonable best efforts to develop a PC main memory
controller designed for use with these RDRAMs. The Company believes that Direct
Rambus technology will offer superior bandwidth compared to other solutions for
PC main memory applications. However, these RDRAMs and the Intel memory
controllers are not scheduled for mass production until 1999, and there can be
no assurance that such devices will be successfully developed or that, if
developed, will be successful in penetrating the market segment for PC main
memory.
The Company believes that its technology, which enables high memory
bandwidth at low cost, is well suited to a broad range of other applications.
Other Rambus-based applications currently being developed include multifunction
peripheral controllers for use in combination fax/copier/scanner/laser printer
applications and networking equipment such as high-speed ethernet switches.
There can be no assurance that such devices will be designed incorporating
Rambus interface technology or that sales of such devices will be meaningful. |
