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Technology Stocks : CRUS, good buy? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Toni Wheeler who wrote (7055)	7/28/1999 7:42:00 AM
From: ted quinn	Respond to of 8193

thanks for posting the sony-microsoft audio connection. please note this section: "Working with Sony Music, Microsoft will enhance the final version of Windows Media 4.0 with the intent of meeting the initial portable device requirements under development by SDMI, which are expected to be finalized June 30. This would make Windows Media 4.0 one of the technologies around which hardware manufacturers could design compliant portable players." gee, wonder which "hardware manufacturers" this is referring to? isn't sony the all-time leader in portable audio players? isn't the name "walkman" part of our lexicon? do you think sony will give this market away or will they follow thru with a purchase of the leading digital audio chip company? below is the official cirrus-microsoft audio connection. i dont think it will be long before we see the official sony-cirrus audio connection. April 13, 1999 Cirrus Logic Supports Microsoft Windows Media Technologies 4.0 High-performance, low-power system-on-chip will target new generation of low-cost portable music players FREMONT, Calif. -- April 13, 1999 -- Leveraging its extensive audio and system-on-a-chip (SOC) experience, Cirrus Logic (Nasdaq: CRUS) today confirmed it is developing a high-speed, low-power chip solution that will support Microsoft's Windows Media Technologies 4.0. The new SOC is targeted at supporting the next wave of portable audio players. "This highly integrated chip solution demonstrates Cirrus Logic's commitment to supporting emerging audio compression standards in a very dynamic market, and our ability to quickly deliver ARM processor-based SOCs that provide high-quality audio in an efficient low-power solution," said Matt Perry, vice president and general manager of Cirrus Logic's Embedded Processors Division. Commenting on the new audio chip solution, Will Poole, Senior Director Marketing and Business Development for Microsoft's Streaming Media Division, said "Cirrus Logic's capabilities and expertise in the digital audio marketplace are highly regarded. Their support will certainly help us achieve our goal of providing the best possible audio quality for streamed or local playback in low-cost portable playback devices." As the world's largest supplier of audio integrated circuits, Cirrus Logic is the only chip maker to address all audio market segments (professional, consumer, computer and automotive). The company already supports numerous important audio standards such as Dolby Digital, AC3, DTS, THX and others now emerging or in development. The complete list of supported standards may be found at the company's web site.

To: Toni Wheeler who wrote (7055)	7/28/1999 8:21:00 AM
From: ted quinn	Respond to of 8193

the Forward Concepts report that says crus is #1 in audio--here's an excerpt from their website: The Convergence of Audio: A Chip Market Analysis -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- EXECUTIVE SUMMARY -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A. INTRODUCTION Historically, the Personal Computer (PC), Consumer, and Professional Audio chip markets were three separate and completely different end markets. Generally, companies targeting the PC space were not really found in the consumer space and visa versa. The needs for the Professional Audio market were so different from the consumer markets that there were separate groups within the semiconductor manufacturers each trying to address the specific needs of each of the market segments. Today, there is a definite convergence of these three markets and the technologies that address them. With new standards like DVD (Digital Versatile Disk)-Audio, Super Audio CD, and Dolby AC-3, manufacturers are touting professional quality audio for your home and PC. Early PCs were mainly used in the workplace. The demand for sound cards did not materialize until the PCs started migrating to the home. At home, the user was able to play games that were written for the SoundBlaster™ standard popularized by Creative Labs. When computer manufacturers started integrating audio in their PCs, it was primarily done in their home PCs. With the technology constantly evolving and the addition of wavetable and 3D sound positional audio in sound cards and in audio controllers, sound found an application in the work PC for VideoConferencing. Today, the audio function has achieved a 100% penetration level in the PC. The sound board market was once an after-market play, but retail sales have largely dried up as sound functionality has become a standard part of most PCs shipped today. Interestingly, we now see audio migrating out of the PC box, completely, within the next 5 years, thanks to Intel. In 1997, PCs were ISA-based with integrated Compact Disk (CD) ROMs. Audio was integrated via add-in cards or FM synthesis sound chips placed right on the motherboard. Looking at 1999 and forward, there is a definite shift in the architecture and the features of the PC. ISA is giving way to PCI, CD ROMs will be replaced by DVD ROMs, analog speakers will be replaced by Digital Speakers, and the PC core logic will integrate necessary audio functions to completely eliminate the need for a separate audio controller. PC FUTURE TRENDS ISA PCI CD ROM DVD ROM ANALOG SPEAKERS DIGITAL SPEAKERS The introduction of the digital CD player, that eventually replaced the analog record player, primed the consumer industry for a major technology shift. A shift from analog to digital technology is taking hold in the consumer industry that is fueled by two factors. One, with the heavy proliferation of the PC in the home, consumers are now requiring better quality video, similar to the quality of the PC. Two, the movie theater industry is driving the technology in the electronic equipment in the home to achieve the same quality audio and video experienced in the movie theaters in the consumer's home theater. To achieve the home theater experience we see two major transitions in the consumer equipment CONSUMER MARKET TECHNOLOGY SHIFTS Analog Digital 2-channel 5+ multichannel systems With analog technology being replaced with Digital and with standard 2-channel systems being replaced by multi-channel systems, a variety of new electronic equipment is starting to emerge and revolutionize the consumer market. The DVD player, with its MPEG-2 video and MPEG or Dolby Digital audio quality, will replace the analog VCR and perhaps even the CD player as DVD players begin to integrate DVD video and DVD audio. Cable and Satellite set-top boxes will continue to experience good growth as new applications like Web browsing start to get integrated in them. Analog Audio/Video (A/V) Receivers will start to be replaced with Digital A/V Receivers that integrate MPEG video and audio as well as Dolby Digital and other popular audio formats. Also speakers will start to integrate digital functionality first in the PC space and then migrating into the Consumer segment. In the portable music player market, Walkman like CD players will be replaced by similar players utilizing the DVD format. The introduction of the PC personal player, like MP3 type players, will reduce the growth rate of the traditional CD portable player as well as the MiniDisc Format.