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Technology Stocks : Rambus (RMBS) - Eagle or Penguin -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Sam P. who wrote (14092)	1/23/1999 8:42:00 AM
From: MileHigh	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 93625

Sam, I think this bit about NEC is new, is it not? But NEC needs to spend less to upgrade because they have always been on the BUS.... Regards, MileHigh

To: Sam P. who wrote (14092)	1/23/1999 8:49:00 AM
From: MileHigh	Respond to of 93625

January 25, 1999, Issue: 1144 Section: Semiconductors -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- UMC to offer Rambus ASIC Cell United Microelectronics Corp. has qualified its manufacturing services to offer the Direct Rambus ASIC Cell (RAC), the controller that resides in chipsets supporting the new high-bandwidth memory. UMC fabricated RAC test chips using its 0.25-micron manufacturing process, and is offering the technology to customers as part of its IP library. Under the program, Rambus licensees will be granted access to the RAC technology at no added cost, according to UMC, Hsinchu, Taiwan. Meanwhile, UMC said it has engaged its first IC customers using a 0.18-micron design rule. The advance puts the company virtually on a par with leading-edge manufacturers such as Intel Corp. and IBM Corp., according to some analysts. The company's 0.18-micron libraries include design kits and physical designs covering standard cells, I/Os, and memory compilers; its Gold L180 process has already been proven on chips from the likes of S3 Inc. and Xilinx Inc. UMC will ramp the process in late March, adding dual-damascene copper interconnect and low-K dielectric technology in the third quarter. Copyright ® 1999 CMP Media Inc.

To: Sam P. who wrote (14092)	1/23/1999 9:09:00 AM
From: MileHigh	Respond to of 93625

January 25, 1999, Issue: 1045 Section: International -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rambus ramblings David Lammers Avo Kanadjian, the Samsung Semiconductor marketing vice president, said 1999 promises to stand on its head, put there by year 2000 in the first half and Rambus in the second. Worldwide demand for PCs and other systems has been strong in the first quarter, when demand normally tanks after the Christmas rush. Companies need to prepare for the millennium early, because financial records roll forward into the year 2000, new fiscal years start in April, and so on. But in the second half, demand for new systems may slump unless compelling new technology is introduced. Enter Rambus, tripping, stumbling, reeling, perhaps, but coming nonetheless. If enough of the Rambus-enabled systems are on the market by midyear, it could spark a revival for a PC industry desperate for something new to offer its customers. At the beginning of this decade, when Gordon Moore sat down to listen to a new concept of memory architecture from Rambus founders Mike Farmwald, Mark Horowitz and venture capitalist Bill Davidow, I doubt if anyone imagined that at the end of the decade the industry would be straining to give birth to the Rambus architecture. But here we are. Or aren't. Not enough of the Direct Rambus DRAMs are shipping. A few vendors have respec-table yields, but most DRAM vendors are barely yielding. LG Semicon, one of the early leaders, is totally distracted by its forced merger with Hyundai. NEC has part of its attention on VCM (virtual channel memory); and Micron, IBM and many others have been dragged most reluctantly to the Rambus party. And that's probably too bad. A half-hearted approach to improving yields and creating a success does no one any good. Intel is being forced to put its S-RIMM option into action, a worst-case scenario. The S-RIMMs might allow system vendors to ship boxes, but since a PC100 S-DRAM lacks the separate control and data buses that are part and parcel to the Direct Rambus architecture, performance with an S-RIMM-stuffed system may be awful. Noise on all those traces won't please the FCC either. The best answer, of course, is to plow ahead, improve RDRAM yields quickly, get some great boxes out to the corporate customers so they can evaluate and probe, and then ramp like hell in the fourth quarter. That will take big capital investments (Korean fab investments this year will be down slightly, according to the Korean Development Bank), and total commitment to the Rambus approach, neither of which is in abundance right now. Send feedback to dlammers@cmp.com. Copyright ® 1999 CMP Media Inc.

To: Sam P. who wrote (14092)	1/23/1999 9:19:00 AM
From: MileHigh	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 93625

January 25, 1999, Issue: 1144 Section: News -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Taiwan getting ready for Rambus Will Wade Silicon Valley- Taiwan's manufacturing machine is gearing up to meet the anticipated market demand for Direct Rambus DRAM, although the island's chip makers don't expect to contribute heartily to the 1999 supply picture. A recent string of licensing deals shows that several key members of Taiwan's semiconductor industry-from DRAM suppliers to chipset makers to foundries-are preparing their lines to roll off Rambus-enabled ICs. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (TSMC) will be granted a license this week to produce chipsets and memory controllers using the high-speed Direct RDRAM interface. This places the world's largest foundry close on the heels of United Microelectronics Corp. (UMC), which announced earlier this month that it already has the capability of manufacturing the Direct RDRAM controller, the so-called Rambus ASIC Cell (RAC). Winbond Electronics Corp., meanwhile, will also license the Direct RDRAM interface, and said last week that it will sample devices in the third quarter. The Hsinchu-based company will incorporate the new technology into upcoming 128/144-Mbit DRAMs, with higher-density devices to follow. While Intel Corp. and Rambus Inc. predict the market for Direct RDRAM will take off in 1999, analysts and some suppliers believe true volume supply is a year away. This is especially true of Taiwan's chip makers, which have a reputation for waiting for markets to mature before entering. According to Hsinchu-based United Semiconductor Corp., Taiwan's Rambus production is still in its infancy, which will limit each licensed DRAM maker to 500 or 600 wafer starts per month as of the fourth quarter. "The shipping amount of Direct Rambus DRAM from Taiwan in 1999 will be very limited, because the infrastructure is not ready yet," said USC president Peter Chang. Vanguard International Semiconductor Corp., for example, which licensed Rambus memory last year, isn't slated to begin making chips until year's end. "There will be more Rambus DRAM licensees from Taiwan. It's an inevitable trend," said Chris Hsieh, an analyst at Nomura Securities Co. Ltd., Taipei. "To prevent them from missing the window, Taiwan IC makers or IC design houses will obtain the technology and get ready for volume production first. But the demand for Rambus DRAM won't be big until Intel's [Pentium III] microprocessor market becomes mature. We probably will have to wait until the year 2001." Still, UMC has already delivered working RAC chips to some of its customers, according to Jim Ballingall, the foundry's vice president for worldwide marketing. UMC is offering the Rambus interface as an intellectual-property cell, which has been qualified for volume production and can be used in PC chipsets and memory controllers, or in non-PC applications such as networking devices. Runner-up title goes to TSMC, which has created test chips using Rambus IP cells and is ready to accept customer orders, according to Kurt Wolf, the company's director of marketing. "We believe TSMC and UMC will have at least half a dozen RAC customers each by next year," predicted Subodh Toprani, vice president and general manager of Rambus' logic products division, Mountain View, Calif. "Most of that will be for the PC market, but there are other applications that can use the RAC." Analysts, however, say the technology isn't yet ready to take off. "We expect Rambus DRAM to account for only 5% of the DRAM market this year," said Bruce Bonner, an analyst at Dataquest Inc., San Jose. "And I don't expect to see Intel's competitors driving demand for Rambus in 1999." -Additional reporting by Sandy Chen. --- The Rambus Plan - TSMC: Receiving Direct RDRAM license this week; has created test chips using Rambus IP cells; ready to accept customer orders - UMC: Offering Rambus interface as IP cell; has delivered working RAC chips - Vanguard: Is a Rambus licensee, but doesn't plan to make Direct RDRAM chips until later this year - Winbond: Will sample devices in third quarter; will incorporate new technology in upcoming 128/144-Mbit DRAMs; higher-density devices to follow Copyright ® 1999 CMP Media Inc.