If the planned $18 billion sale of Toshiba Corp.’s flash memory unit to a consortium led by Bain Capital Private Equity, LP survives legal objections and receives regulatory approval, the deal can be expected to result in higher component supplies within the next year, helping to allay OEM fears of tightening purchasing conditions for the…
Portions of the electronics industry are applauding a policy shift toward the so-called “conflict minerals” rule that requires publicly traded U.S. companies to disclose the use of tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold (3TG) sourced from war-torn regions of Africa. Acting Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Michael Piwowar has directed agency staff to reconsider how companies…
While the mantra of the high-tech industry is constant change, the types of changes our industry has been facing just this month are far outside the norm. The burning business and industry questions are not about volatile market cycles but what happens when ideology meets manufacturing reality along the global supply chain. There are, to…
The contract price for PC DRAM is forecast to increase by more than 30 percent sequentially in the fourth quarter of 2016 due to tight supply, according to DRAMeXchange, a division of TrendForce. With tight supply expected to continue into 2017, buyers also should anticipate higher tags. The market research firm attributes the price increase to…
The top 20 semiconductor companies are expected to increase their sales by three percent in 2016, according to a new IC Insights report. This is two percentage points higher than the market research firm’s worldwide semiconductor market forecast for 2016. The report also finds that five of the top 20 – Nvidia, MediaTek, Apple, Toshiba,…
For only the second time in its history, Gartner Inc. is predicting two consecutive years of revenue decline in the semiconductor industry. For 2016, worldwide semiconductor revenue is forecast to total $332 billion, a decrease of 0.9 percent from 2015, according to Gartner. But the outlook for the semiconductor market is improving. “The worst appears…
The supply shortage of NAND flash in the third quarter of 2016 will exacerbate in the fourth quarter due to higher demand in the smartphone and solid-state drive (SSD) industries, according to the latest report from DRAMeXchange, a division of TrendForce. While this is bad news for buyers, suppliers are expected to experience higher margins and…
The new normal of low growth rates is clear. We are unlikely to resume to the double-digit levels once experienced – at least for a while. Saturation across tech verticals, notably smartphones, is also expanding. However, despite these gloomy outlooks, there are markets where strong growth is still on the event horizon: emerging markets. While…
Apple Inc. is right to defend itself against the European Commission’s $14.5 billion fine for alleged tax underpayment in Ireland but its defense strategy and explanations should not be adopted by other high-tech companies that may come under regulatory scrutiny. The company is ignoring rising consumer, regulatory and political concerns that many high tech enterprises…
Apple Inc. has a ferocious and vigorous defender-in-chief in Timothy Cook, who also doubles as the company’s chief executive officer. This year, Cook has written at least two “open” letters to Apple stakeholders on challenges facing the company, the last being on a $14.5 billion fine from the European Commission. Earlier this year, Cook in…