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Technology Stocks : ATI Technologies in 1997 (T.ATY) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: SBHX who wrote (3370)	5/8/1999 11:07:00 PM
From: Sleeperz	Respond to of 5927

With the exit of NSM/Cyrix from the PC market, marks the death of the $399 PC. But the Sony PSX2 could fill it in now. As for the lower end of the market ($399 PCs), that growth was widely anticipated, however, the shrinkage at the consumer/entertainment power-user PCs did not materialize as some feared. In fact, all segments are still growing. The explosion in the $399 PC segment did two things : Graphics is a commodity when you can plug in chips/card from several different companies and do the same thing more of less. Through the years several died and the birth of several more. If we're so convinced that graphics becoming a commodity is just around the corner, then we should divest completely from this market. Just because a product is a commodity does not mean there is not growth. Oil and Gas is a commodity and there is still growth and expansion. That is why oil was so cheap earlier this year, Too much oil. The only things that are still evolving quickly are the CPU and graphics. If even graphics is a commodity, then that leaves only the CPU as the area of growth. Sony already has forseen the PC-industry evolve into something else, the PSX2. The PSX2 will not be just a game machine. Somehow I suspect there's still a couple of years left before the graphics performance/feature requirement starts to flatten. And even then, we'll be seeing the PC-industry evolve or merge into something else. SOC means many things depending on the industry you are in. CYRIX crack at a PC SOC has resulted in failure. An SOC cellphone is more or less already here as a DSP resulting in smaller and smaller cellphones. Soon everyone will have a miniature cellphone button on their shirt. Digital Camera SOC resulting in smaller and smaller digital cameras. I suspect ATI SOC STB will be like their foray into the modem market. What is an ATI STB? No consumer brand name. As for investing in ATI. If you believe in their business strategy, you must believe that they are planning for that day. Look at their announcement of SOC :: because they have been extremely profitable, and have a steady revenue stream, they are able to worry about longer term growth plans than the firms that are just struggling to meet payroll.