Sockalysis,
Since you're so hot on Hyundai, here are some more recent articles than the one you posted...
[Bottom line: as the President of Hyundai said ""We can not ignore the implementation and adoption of RDRAM. We can be ready to begin volume production in a couple of months, if needed. However, we base our production plans on the demands of our customers. They will decide when and if we start producing Rambus memory." And as Nathan Brookwood, analyst with Insight 64, says "The issue is not can they do it, but do they want to. Intel's roadmap may play out in the Willamette space. As I look at what is needed for Willamette to get the full use of the performance, RDRAM may be the only workable solution." Brookwood added that "unless someone comes along with a superior DDR subsystem, RDRAM is it for Willamette. Willamette is Intel's new IA-32 microarchitecture targeted at the desktop PC space, which the company will introduce in the second half of this year."
So as the demand for RDRAM increases, Hyundai will jump in (they're already expanding their RDRAM production facilities). As you'll see below as well, their RDRAM chips have already been validated by Rambus, so they're set to go.]
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RDRAM output rises at Samsung, Hyundai.
Company Operations)
Electronic Engineering Times, March 13, 2000 p41
By Park, Yoonhee
Full Text
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA - Anticipating brisk demand, Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. and Hyundai Electronics Co. Ltd. appear likely to expand Rambus DRAM production. Samsung said it will boost RDRAM production fivefold while Hyundai is also considering expanded memory production.
Both companies are betting that RDRAM demand will increase with the introduction of high-performance PCs and game players. The production increase will also challenge DRAM rivals such as NEC Corp. and Infineon Technologies.
Samsung said it will increase production from the current 2 million units per month to 10 million by the second half of the year. The production increase will be supported by expansion of existing plants and plans for new ones. Samsung will focus production on 288-Mbit Rambus DRAMs with twice the capacity of current memory products. The company thinks increased production of higher-capacity memory devices could give it a leg up over competitors.
If RDRAM demand does increase, Hyundai said, it will also expand production. The company is already expanding RDRAM production lines in its Chungju plant.
Expanding RDRAM production there and at its Inchon plants would allow Hyundai some flexibility to adjust RDRAM production according to market requirements, the company said.
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Rambus' stock surges.
(Heard)(Company Financial Information)(Brief Article)
Electronic Buyers' News, March 6, 2000 p8
By Robertson, Jack
Full Text
Rambus Inc.'s stock price last week soared, reaching $312 per share before falling back to $280 at midday Friday. Many analysts thought the fourfold jump from last month's price was driven by speculation. Rambus announced last week that five chip makers-Hyundai, Infineon, NEC, Samsung, and Toshiba-have been validated for production.
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Out of Memory .
(Industry Trend or Event)
Electronic News (1991), Feb 21, 2000 v46 i08 p1
By Brown, Peter
Full Text
Palm Springs, Calif.— Intel Corp. last week said that its upcoming Willamette microprocessor will use Rambus DRAM (RDRAM) exclusively, boosting the fortunes of the high-speed memory. However, with only two memory suppliers now shipping RDRAM and others only just starting to ramp production, there may not be enough parts to satisfy the demands of PC OEMs this year.
Although Rambus Inc., Mountain View, Calif., says that RDRAM shipments are on the rise, two of the largest DRAM makers -- Hyundai MicroElectronics and Micron Technology Inc. -- are currently not shipping the parts. This could throw a monkey wrench into Intel's microprocessor portfolio plans, which include two new microarchitectures, one reaching beyond the 1GHz performance plateau. The high-speed of RDRAM will be required for those microprocessors to realize their performance potential.
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Only Samsung Semiconductor, and to a limited extent NEC Corp., currently are shipping RDRAMs.
However, Toshiba Corp. has been qualified for the technology and should begin shipping in the second quarter, as should Infineon Technologies Inc., formerly Siemens, which still hasn't received Intel's quality stamp, according to Peter D. MacWilliams, Intel fellow and director of platform architecture.
"We expect to have six suppliers representing 80 percent of the market shipping RDRAM in volume by the end of the year," said MacWilliams, alluding to the fact that Micron and Hyundai will be the other two major suppliers of the six mentioned.
Avo Kanadjian, vice president of worldwide marketing at Mountain View, Calif.-based Rambus, agreed, saying by the end of the first quarter these four companies - Infineon, Toshiba, Samsung and NEC - will be validated and should be shipping in the second quarter. As for Micron and Hyundai, he expects them to sign on to RDRAM as well, but declined to say when.
However, if PC OEMs begin to support RDRAM this year, the four companies shipping the product may not be able to sustain the market. That would leave an opportunity for Hyundai and Micron to either enter the market early, or wait until the end of the year as expected.
Hyundai MicroElectronics, a division of Hyundai Electronics industries Co. Ltd., has not made a formal commitment to producing the technology, yet. However, last week it did give a hint that it may start very soon.
"We can not ignore the implementation and adoption of RDRAM," said Sang Park, president and chief operating officer at Hyundai MicroElectronics. "We can be ready to begin volume production in a couple of months, if needed. However, we base our production plans on the demands of our customers. They will decide when and if we start producing Rambus memory."
Micron will begin shipping RDRAM in volume in the fourth quarter, according to Jeff Mailloux, marketing manager for the DRAM division of Micron, Boise, Idaho. Currently the company is working on many of the engineering stages, including improving speeds and yields.
"We are basing our volume of DRAM on our customer demand," Mailloux said. aWe work with our customers to get their inputs on what they need in the time frame for the entire year and we will be making a mix of EDO, DDR, SDRAM and RDRAM based on what they told us."
"The issue is not can they do it, but do they want to," said Nathan Brookwood, analyst with Insight 64. aIntelas roadmap may play out in the Willamette space. As I look at what is needed for Willamette to get the full use of the performance, RDRAM may be the only workable solution."
Brookwood added that unless someone comes along with a superior DDR subsystem, RDRAM is it for Willamette. Willamette is Intel's new IA-32 microarchitecture targeted at the desktop PC space, which the company will introduce in the second half of this year.
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