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Technology Stocks : Rambus (RMBS) - Eagle or Penguin
RMBS 95.53+0.7%12:59 PM EST
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To: Matthew Dugas who wrote (16443)2/23/1999 8:49:00 AM
From: Shibumi  Read Replies (1) of 93625
 
DRAM process versus design R&D

>>Gilder's Microcosm sucks...<<

I apologize; I obviously wasn't clear enough when I used the term "layman". For those not familiar with Gilder, he's an ex-business writer (Fortune?) who has gotten in the business of high-technology prophecy. The learned criticism of Gilder in the referenced post notwithstanding; I'd recommend _Microcosm_'s passage on Micron to a lay-person who is trying to understand ***at a high level*** the advantages and disadvantages of process versus design R&D for a DRAM manufacturer.

One of the concerns noted in this thread many times has been that DRAM manufacturers resent paying the Rambus royalty. I'm absolutely sure that they do...there is strong resistance in the semiconductor industry to intellectual property "taxes". And yet, the reason that Rambus is one of the few silicon intellectual property companies that is turning a profit is that the company has to date targeted a specific niche -- DRAM design R&D -- which is difficult for any single DRAM manufacturer to compete against because of the highly standard nature (i.e., commoditized) nature of DRAM's themselves. The way that they would like to attack this is through consortia -- however, as anyone who has worked with a large group of people with no one having authority knows, this is a difficult model to make effective.

In any case, I'm not a fan of Gilder nor do I subscribe to any of his over-priced and under-informed publications; however, if I were starting out trying to understand semiconductors as a lay-person, I could think of far worst places to go for reference than the book I note.

My best,
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