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Technology Stocks : Applied Materials No-Politics Thread (AMAT) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: robert b furman who wrote (95)	10/26/2001 10:47:35 AM
From: Proud_Infidel	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 25522

Cisco selects two new DRAM technologies over Rambus for next-generation equipment By Mark LaPedus Semiconductor Business News (10/26/01 10:35 a.m. EST) SAN JOSE -- The next-generation DRAM business for networking applications is heating up--if not taking shape in the market. Cisco Systems Inc. here disclosed that it plans to use new memory technologies from Fujitsu Ltd., Infineon Technologies AG and Toshiba Corp., but not Rambus Inc. In its next-generation networking equipment, Cisco plans to use two new and emerging memory technologies--fast cycle random access memory (FCRAM) and reduced latency DRAM (RLDRAM), said Steve Fu, technical leader in Cisco's chief technology office. Japan's Fujitsu and Toshiba are the main backers and developers of FCRAMs, while Germany's Infineon develops the rival RLDRAM technology, it was noted. There are no plans to use Rambus Inc.'s high-speed RDRAM technology--for now, Fu said. "Rambus is a very interesting and cost-effective solution," Fu said. "We are not supporting [Rambus]," he said during a keynote address at the Network Processors Conference here earlier this week. Asked to comment why Cisco would not use Rambus, Fu in an interview after the keynote said, "There are some technical reasons." Fu declined to elaborate, but also said that Cisco may use Rambus in the future. During the keynote, Fu also caused a stir by saying that network-processor suppliers have fallen short of their promises in the market (see Oct. 24 story ). In the next-generation memory market, meanwhile, Cisco's decision to go with FCRAMs and RLDRAMs are a major boost for Fujitsu, Infineon, and Toshiba. Cisco--one of the world's largest consumers of chips--has little or no choice but to move to new memory technologies. In the past, networking-equipment OEMs used SDRAMs, SRAMs and other standard products in their systems. Now, with the need for higher-bandwidth systems, OEMs require faster memory architectures to boost the overall throughput. In this segment, the market is up for grabs between FCRAMs, RLDRAMs, and Rambus. Rambus of Mountain View, Calif. is promoting a version of its Direct RDRAM for networking applications. Networking equipment OEMs are also looking to use double-data-rate (DDR) SDRAMs as well. Analysts, however, believe that Rambus is well positioned in the networking space. Vitesse Semiconductor Corp.'s network-processor line supports RDRAMs. Meanwhile, sources believe that Intel Corp.'s next-generation, network-processor line will have a RDRAM interface.

To: robert b furman who wrote (95)	10/26/2001 11:42:52 AM
From: Proud_Infidel	Respond to of 25522

Toshiba, NEC report lackluster first-half results By Paul Kallender EE Times (10/26/01 10:57 a.m. EST) TOKYO — Heavy losses at their semiconductor divisions marred the first-half financial results of Toshiba Corp. and NEC Corp. released Friday (Oct. 26), and Toshiba hinted it may exit the memory business altogether. Toshiba suffered a net loss of $1 billion in the first half and scaled up its projected loss for the year ending March 31, 2002 to $1.6 billion, an increase from the company's earlier forecast of a $938 million loss for the fiscal year. Toshiba's semiconductor group will account for three-quarters of that loss, the company said. Sales at Toshiba's Electronic Devices & Components Group dropped 33 percent to $4.6 billion due to "sluggish demand and price erosion in DRAMs, system LSIs, discrete devices and LCDs," the company said. Toshiba president Tadashi Okamura told reporters that he expects his semiconductor business unit to report losses of $1.2 billion for the full year, with the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks taking a heavy toll on the company's business outlook. This revision is Toshiba's second major outlook adjustment since this spring. The company had originally projected a $408 million profit in semiconductors for the year, then drastically revised that to a $767 million loss in August. Possible withdrawal As part of Japan's strategic backing away or withdrawal from industries in which it cannot compete effectively, Toshiba earlier this month announced it was merging its LCD business with Matsushita Electric Industrial. There are now signs that Toshiba may be throwing in the towel with memory as well, with Okamura hinting that Toshiba has become increasingly weary of its memory business losses. Earlier this week, the company teamed up with NEC, Hitachi and Mitsubishi Electric to "investigate" possible DRAM dumping by Hynix Semiconductor and Samsung Electronics as a prelude to possible legal action. While all of Japan's memory makers are anxious to maintain their memory technologies to help drive process improvements for logic and other semiconductors, they have plotted mixed exit strategies from the commodity DRAM market since 1998. Okamura suggested Toshiba's strategy may get a step more radical. Earlier this summer, Toshiba confirmed it was negotiating with Infineon Technologies AG to form an as yet undisclosed partnership or alliance. The company said it might sell off parts of its memory business to Infineon or combine the two companies' operations, as Hitachi Ltd. and NEC Corp. merged their DRAM operations to form Elpida Memory Inc. Local media here has pushed speculation that the two companies were near a deal. Asked if Toshiba would quit DRAM production if negotiations with Infineon fell through, Okamura replied, "Yes, it's possible." Okamura also disclosed more semiconductor capacity cuts, telling reporters Toshiba would cut both its clean room and assembly line capacity 30 percent during the remainder of the financial year. Okamura said the cuts were in the "planning stages" and would not confirm which lines, fabs or clean rooms would be affected. While Toshiba contemplates quitting the DRAM business altogether, NEC confirmed it would completely withdraw by 2004, transferring all production to Elpida. NEC also reported first-half results on Friday, with a net loss of $243 million compared with a profit of $167 million in last year's first half. The company's three main groups faired differently, with the DRAM-making NEC Electron Devices taking a battering. NEC Solutions' sales dropped 4 percent compared to last year to $7.8 billion, and profits fell by about a third to $152 million. NEC Networks actually boosted its profit from $269 million in last year's first half to $440 million this year, strengthened mainly by sales of Japan's popular i-Mode mobile handset, said executive vice president Shigeo Matsumoto. But this year's stumbling semiconductor market delivered a $451 million loss to NEC Electron Devices. Sales for the division fell 34 percent compared to last year, with semiconductor sales dropping 36 percent, displays down 38 percent and component sales down 7 percent. Matsumoto said NEC remained optimistic about mobile communications, but said he held no hope for improved PC or semiconductor demand over the next two quarters. "While demand for domestic mobile phone handsets is expected to be favorable, NEC expects demand for PCs and semiconductors to continue to decrease throughout this fiscal year," he said. On top of several waves of restructuring already announced, the company also announced today it would liquidate NEC Computer Storage Philippines Inc., its hard-disk drive business in the Philippines, just three years after establishing it. The closure will cut 1,400 employees by December.

To: robert b furman who wrote (95)	10/26/2001 2:37:34 PM
From: Proud_Infidel	Respond to of 25522

Electronics gets boost from Pentagon budget hike By George Leopold EE Times (10/26/01 13:45 p.m. EST) ALEXANDRIA, Va. - "Transformation" of the U.S. military into a more agile fighting force with a range of new anti-terror missions will translate into big increases in electronics spending over the next decade, according to an industry forecast. The Government Electronics & Information Technology Association (GEIA) reported in its latest 10-year DOD spending forecast that the expected spike in overall military procurement could boost spending on electronics by $15 billion over the next decade to $78 billion a year by 2012. Overall military spending could reach $400 billion annually by fiscal 2012, the group said. Aircraft procurement led by production of the Joint Strike Fighter translates into $35 billion in electronics content by 2012, the industry study found. The Pentagon is expected to announce the winner of the $200 billion fighter contract on Friday. Analysts said Lockheed Martin Corp. could have the edge over Boeing Co., although both companies said they would subcontract work to the loser. The Pentagon wants to build about 3,000 of the planes. Expensive transformation A Pentagon report to Congress on U.S. military strategy included plans to field a long list of new "transformational" technologies for long-range precision strikes, global intelligence gathering and real-time dissemination. Transforming the U.S. military is a "major expense" that remains to be resolved by Pentagon planners, said Tom Davis, senior analyst with Northrop Grumman Corp. and chairman of the GEIA study. DOD "is searching for agreement on what 'transformation' means," Davis added. Either way, emerging technologies like unmanned aircraft in the anti-terror war, modeling and simulation to cut training costs and "information superiority" systems are forecast to significantly boost electronics in new and existing weapons over the next decade, the forecast found. Military R&D will also help spread the integration of electronics in weapons, especially reconnaissance and surveillance systems like the Global Hawk unmanned surveillance aircraft. The long-range craft could be rushed into service over Afghanistan, sources said, with an underground imaging capability that could spot enemy bunkers and weapons caches. Global Hawk has a range of about 14,000 nautical miles and flew from Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., to an air base in southern Australia in April. Forecasters predicted a growing "black budget" for classified reconnaissance, surveillance and intelligence programs as funding builds for the war on terrorism. Military planners want better intelligence and the ability to "adapt to surprise," said Davis, a former Army colonel. The $27 billion R&D budget for 2002 is expected to emphasize special operations. Research spending is forecast to hit $31 billion by 2012, GEIA said.