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To: Taro who wrote (4507)	1/16/1999 6:52:00 PM
From: DJBEINO	Respond to of 9582

Micron says it did right thing with Lehi plant Associated Press BOISE — Manufacturing computer memory chips continues to be a money-losing venture for Micron Technology Inc., which will keep it's unfinished fabrication plant in Lehi in mothballs until conditions change. "We did the right thing," Micron President Steve Appleton told stockholders at the company's annual meeting on Thursday. "It's common to build and not use a factory until the market is ready. It's sitting there, ready to equip when we need it." The plummeting price of computer memory chips has cost Micron Technology Inc.'s bottom line, but the company's ability to pare manufacturing costs has placed it in excellent financial shape, he said. "We know the market cycles. This currently is reflective of the fourth cycle since I've been here," Appleton said at the annual shareholders' meeting on Thursday. Micron lost $234 million last year due to the average selling price of chips, which declined 60 percent. It dropped $93 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 1998 and lost $46 million in the first quarter of the current year. But the Boise-based manufacturer also became a worldwide concern last September when it acquired most of Texas Instruments' computer memory business. Last September, Micron also sold 15.8 million shares of stock to the Intel Corp. microprocessor manufacturer for $500 million. It made available to Intel a percentage of its chip output over a five-year period. Micron also completed a stock-for-stock merger with Rendition Inc., which produces graphics accelerators for personal computers. Rendition shareholders got about 3.7 million shares of stock. Micron's stock is selling for more than $70 a share this week, the highest price in more than three years. The company's investment balance increased from $650 million last Sept. 3 to $1.9 billion on Dec. 3, primarily due to financing from the Texas Instruments acquisition and Intel investment. The average selling price of Micron's top memory chip product, the 64 Meg SDRAM, increased 8 percent in the first quarter of this year. In the same time, total chip production rose 10 percent, while the production cost remained unchanged. "Our cost-reduction efforts over the last two years have been nothing short than phenomenal," Appleton said. The company plans to spend about $325 million this year designing and perfecting its products and equipment, a 20 percent increase from 1998. Last year, Micron lobbied to prevent the International Monetary Fund from handing over tax dollars to its competitors in South Korea. Micron began construction on the Lehi plant in 1995 just before Asian competetition made finishing the plant impractical. deseretnews.com

To: Taro who wrote (4507)	1/18/1999 1:11:00 PM
From: DJBEINO	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 9582

UMC Foundry Services Available to Rambus Chip Customers SUNNYVALE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 18, 1999--UMC Group announced today that it is the first semiconductor foundry to expand its services to controller chip product developers that utilize Rambus' memory interface -- the Direct Rambus ASIC Cell (RAC). Rambus Inc. (Nasdaq:RMBS - news) today also announced it has successfully fabricated the RAC in the form of test chips on UMC's 0.25 micron process (Gold Logic™ L250). Dave Mooring, vice president and general manager for Rambus' PC Division, commented, ''Rambus' chipset and memory controller customers can now take advantage of UMC's rich offering of design kits, libraries and system-on-chip technology as our Direct Rambus ASIC Cell targets UMC's 0.25 micron process.'' Jim Ballingall, vice president of worldwide marketing for UMC Group (USA), said, ''UMC Group is committed to offering the most comprehensive set of high value IP libraries in the industry. Accordingly, we are pleased to offer the RAC as this interface expands our IP capabilities and enables our customers to more readily integrate memory components into their designs. Moreover, we expect that the RAC will be a primary interface for PC chipsets in 1999 and beyond.'' The test chips containing the RAC have been fully characterized by Rambus. The chips meet Rambus' specifications and will support 800 MHz memory system operation. Targeted for UMC's foundry customers, the Direct RAC delivers 1.6 gigabytes per sec over 72-pin interface, and is ideally suited for chipset and desktop multimedia. Developed in conjunction with Intel Corp. and in cooperation with DRAM and other semiconductor partners, the Direct Rambus interface achieves its unprecedented performance through electrical and architectural innovations. System applications for Direct Rambus technology include computers, multimedia and graphics, communications and consumer electronics. Currently, over 50 companies are committed to delivering Direct Rambus technology within their products; including 14 DRAM manufacturers (supplying more than 96% of the worldwide DRAM market); 20 logic IC suppliers, including Intel Corp [Nasdaq:INTC - news].; and 25 companies representing the leaders in system-memory implementation products (including memory modules, connectors, clock chips and test systems). Availability The Rambus Direct RAC is part of UMC's Gold IP program, meaning it is already being used by UMC customers. Customers that are seeking the Direct RAC must license it from Rambus. About UMC Group UMC Group is a world leading semiconductor foundry group consisting of United Microelectronics Corp. (UMC), United Semiconductor Corp. (USC), United Integrated Circuits Corp. (UICC), United Silicon, Inc. (USIC), UTEK Semiconductor Corp. (UTEK), and the first dedicated foundry in Japan, Nippon Foundry Inc. (NFI). The group leads the dedicated foundry industry in value-added design support with its Gold IP(SM) program. In 1998, UMC Group's Gold Logic™ L250 (0.25 micron) and Gold Logic™ L220 (0.22 micron) process technologies set the foundry industry benchmark for production volumes, capacity and yields in very deep sub-micron technology. In 1999, UMC Group will have production-ready 0.18 micron (L180) and copper-interconnect technology. The UMC Group Silicon Shuttle(SM) test-chip program enables library vendors, IP vendors and foundry customers to verify their designs in silicon at low or no cost. UMC Group companies are headquartered in Taiwan, with marketing and customer support offices located in the United States, Japan, and the Netherlands. UMC Group (U.S.A.) offices are located at 788 Palomar Avenue, Sunnyvale, CA 94086, tel. 408/733-8881, fax 408/733-8090. biz.yahoo.com