Taiwan Semiconductor's chairman predicts future growth in the industry. Here is the story. Jeff
<<
PHOENIX (March 8) BUSINESS WIRE -March 8, 1999--Morris Chang, chairman of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), and keynote speaker at the Semico Summit Conference, predicted the worldwide integrated circuit (IC) market will reach $370 billion by 2008, a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13 percent.
The announcement was made at the Semico Summit, a conference for leaders in the semiconductor industry, which is currently being held at the Royal Palms Hotel in Phoenix, from March 7-9.
TSMC, a silicon foundry, expects the foundry business to grow from $5.4 billion in 1998 to $39.4 billion by 2008, a CAGR of 22 percent. According to Chang, the growth in the foundry business is driven by the increasingly competitive nature of the IC industry.
Increases in R&D cost of technology development and the capital cost of wafer fabs has continued to rise along with the technological complexities. Foundries offer a low-risk and competitive way to enter the IC industry by offering low entry barriers and low financial burdens.
Morris Chang was also awarded the Semico Bellwether Award, for his significant contributions in the semiconductor industry. Previously, it was traditional for a company entering the IC industry to invest in a fab. Chang's vision was that a foundry and a foundry customer could successfully work together to create a "virtual fab", thereby offering greater production flexibility, quality, and lower cost.
Semico Research Corp. ( www.semico.com) is a leader in semiconductor market analysis, research and custom consulting. Semico was established in 1994 by experienced electronics industry experts who believe that a focus on end user applications by market segment is essential for the 21st century.
Its headquarters are in Phoenix, with offices in Northern California, and Massachusetts, as well as Europe and Japan.
>> |
