Southern Africa
UEC Technologies, a South African international leader in digital technical innovation, and OpenTV, a world leading interactive television (iTV) company, has announced that UEC has completed integration and certification of its DCD760 broadband cable set-top box (STB) with OpenTV's middleware and Internet software. The first customer scheduled to deploy this advanced STB is Shanghai Cable Network (SCN) in Shanghai, China. SCN is expected to be able to offer interactive television and Internet services to its 3,2 million subscribers with the UEC DCD760 and OpenTV's middleware by July 2002, says UEC. This solution will allow subscribers to the Shanghai Cable Network to view television programming and simultaneously surf the Internet or send and receive e-mails directly from the set-top box. UEC managing director, Francois Stols said that by understanding the driving forces behind Shanghai Cable's business and by working with technology partners like OpenTV, UEC had been able to build the best technical iTV solution possible. He said, "Cable networks are ideally suited for delivering a fully interactive television experience. UEC is committed to providing set-top box technology that will allow cable operators worldwide to utilise this medium to the fullest." UEC is the first manufacturer in the Asia Pacific region to integrate OpenTV Core Middleware and OpenTV HTML package into an advanced broadband cable set-top box.
Prism Holdings unveiled its new Linux AirTrax high-speed SMS platform at the recent 3GSM World Exhibition in Cannes, France. This platform is a massively scalable and flexible option for delivering value-added data applications for GSM operators according to the group. The system also incorporates technology that reduces network traffic by up to 40% during peak usage periods it claims. Steven Sidley, Prism's Group marketing director, says that the Linux AirTrax is believed to be the first to take advantage of the Linux open source operating system which he says runs efficiently on almost any hardware capable of performing server-class operations. Designed specifically for the high-speed switching of advanced data services, including mobile banking transactions and mobile payment applications, the platform is built around the concept of peer-to-peer SMS routing and realtime SMS acknowledgement, as opposed to the store-and-forward mode of the traditional SMS-C. According to Prism, the GSM Association says that SMS delivery had risen to around three-quarters of a billion SMS messages a day by end-September 2001. As a result, the GSM Association upgraded its previously issued estimates for end 2001 from 200 to 250 billion total mobile messages globally and estimates that the daily rate will top one billion regularly when the impact of the fast-growing Internet-to-mobile messaging services is included.
The Siemens Power Transmission and Distribution Group (PTD) is electrifying a hundred villages in Gabon in a 20m Euro project ordered by the state energy ministry, and is scheduled for completion by the end of 2003. Under this programme, Siemens says it is installing maintenance-free decentralised power supply systems each consisting of a switchgear cubicle with inverter, battery charge regulator and lead-acid batteries supplied from solar collectors on the roof of the cubicle. These systems have been developed to provide power for medical stations, village schools, homes and street lighting.
Forge Ahead BMI-T, a research, consulting and networking company, has announced a two-day international information and communications technology (ICT) convention and workshop on the use of information technology to enhance government service delivery. The event will be staged in August at Gallagher Estate, in partnership with a key government stakeholder. This year's convention and workshops aim to: present a large-scale international ICT forum for government ICT managers; focus on IT and telecommunication in government, e-government and service delivery through technology; and present the latest international benchmarking and case studies on ICT in government.
Sourcecom, an e-nablement ICT services company, has announced its foray into the growing educational IT market. This comes in the wake of the company clinching a number of major educational-IT contracts over the past year. Contracts won include a PC roll-out to schools nationwide on behalf of SchoolNet for the iLearn project and continued supply to the Khanya project in the Western Cape. Sourcecom also won the tender to project-manage Thintana's (Telkom's strategic equity partner) Maths, Science and Technology Project (MST), which has seen a R30m injection into building the technological, maths and science skills base of schools and communities around the country. This project, which celebrated its official launch in Vosloorus recently, aims to provide schools and communities, nationwide, with a full complement of maths, technology and science skills, resources and equipment, as well as critical training and resource centre support. Eighteen centres of excellence have been set up to provide substantive technological resources to previously disadvantaged communities, while additional resources and curriculum-focused or career-advancement training, in maths and science, will be rolled out over some 200 schools in SA.
Against a sluggish world economy and a devaluing rand, communications leader Motorola says it has noted an increase in sales of two-way radio technology. The company reported a 4% growth in two-way radios for the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region and a massive 26% growth in two-way accessory sales during the 2000 and 2001 period. Nik Patel, business manager for Motorola CGISS: MEA, said that the increase in sales reflects a growing awareness of the benefits of two-way radio across a broader range of vertical markets, and becoming increasingly acknowledged as a cost-effective communication solution. Users pay a once-off fee for setting up the network, which could include base stations, repeaters, accessories and handsets, and after this, only pay an annual licence fee.
Grintek Aviation Systems, a division of electronics group Grintek Limited, has been awarded a contract of over R5m for the supply, installation and commissioning of the new Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport's navigational equipment. The division has also been tasked by the Republic of Botswana, Department of Civil Aviation, for the supply, installation and commissioning of a Non Directional Beacon (NDB) to be installed at Kasane. Equipment to be installed at Kruger Mpumalanga International includes the Normarc 7000 Instrument Landing System (ILS), Fernau 2020 Distance Measuring Equipment (DME) and a Non-Directional Beacon (NDB).
MTN Business Solutions' high-speed data offering, DataFast, can now handle data transfer speeds of up to 57,6 Kbps, allowing better than standard fixed line connection speeds while dramatically outperforming other South African mobile network data speeds, according to the group. MTN Business Solutions said that growing demand for affordable and simple-to-use high-speed mobile data transfer prompted it to further increase the speed possible with DataFast, a product designed for mobile business users who need to access and send data quickly while on the move. According to Bernice Samuels, general manager of marketing and strategy at MTN, there is a certain future for DataFast and its technology, even with GPRS soon to be launched by the network. "High-speed data is very different to GPRS in that it is faster (GPRS is always on, but slower) and so will be attractive for certain business applications well into the future. These are two different technologies, one does not replace the other. MTN certainly believes they will coexist for quite some time," explained Samuels.
Erlang Communications has been awarded exclusive distribution rights for the whole of Africa including South Africa, Madagascar, Mauritius and the Seychelles by Bird Technologies Group (BTG), USA. Erlang previously had exclusive rights to Madagascar, Mauritius, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, the Seychelles and Uganda. BTG designs, manufactures and markets RF components, instruments and systems. See page 5.
Electrocomp has been appointed to represent STMicroelectronics as value-added-distributor for Avnet Kopp.
Overseas
Business
National Semiconductor reported revenues of $369,5m for its third fiscal quarter, a 22,3% drop from $475,6m in the same period a year ago, but a 1% increase from $366,5m in the previous quarter. The company also reported a loss of $37,8m, compared to a profit of $39,2m, in the same period a year ago. In the previous quarter, the company reported a loss of $46,6m. National said that display chip products, which includes flat-panel displays and traditional CRTs, led the quarter with dramatic growth sequentially and year-over-year, and wireless handset IC products, including power management, audio chips and wireless application-specific solutions, also saw stronger bookings during Q3. For the fourth quarter, National said it projects a revenue increase of 6 to 9% over the third quarter.
Microchip Technology has announced that it now expects revenues in the current fiscal quarter to be at the upper end of its previous guidance - about $145m, or 2% higher than the prior quarter. The company had previously predicted that revenues would be in a range of 1 to 2% higher than $141,7m in the prior quarter. Steve Sanghi, Microchip president and CEO said that in the last several weeks, evidence strengthened that the general economy, as well as the semiconductor industry, is improving. "The inventory in the channel is the lowest we have on record. There is an increasing number of reports of lead times lengthening on selected microcontrollers and Serial EEPROMs at certain competitors. Also, selling prices for some Serial EEPROMs in certain markets are rising from the bottom," he said. He also said that Microchip has a very good inventory mix, which positions it well for the coming months.
Intel has narrowed its first quarter sales forecast to between $6,6 bn and $6,9 bn from an earlier range of $6,4 bn to $7,0 bn, signalling that its business is doing slightly better than it had expected.
Hynix Semiconductor announced today that, as of January, it has recurring profit in its financial results. It said its profit for the first two months of 2002 was as a result of internal cost-cutting measures and a rise in DRAM prices attributable to an upturn in the global IT industry, as well as an overall increase in semiconductor demand. In 2001, Hynix, along with the entire semiconductor industry, suffered from a steep drop in DRAM demand. To address the difficult environment of 2001, it spun-off all of its non-semiconductor business operations in the first half of 2001. To ensure its price competitiveness, Hynix said it also completed its 'Blue Chip' technology project which enables ultra-fine geometry with less than one-third the investment normally required to develop this class of technology. It focused on high value-added products, including next generation DDR memory chips, and enhanced its non-DRAM operations to provide a balanced product portfolio. In addition, it aggressively penetrated new markets, such as China and India, where it now holds a market dominance.
Nokia, the world's largest mobile phone manufacturer, has announced it was on track to meet or exceed earnings guidance for the first quarter, although it warned that sales of network equipment would see a sharper decline than previously forecast. Revenues in the network business would be down 25% year-on-year in the first quarter, it said, rather than the 16-20% decline it estimated in January.
Companies
Intersil has announced it will acquire Elantec Semiconductor for $1,4 bn in stock and cash. Intersil, a leader in wireless networking and high performance analog, said it will expand into additional high growth analog markets with this acquisition. Upon the close of the transaction, Greg Williams, Intersil president and CEO, will become executive chairman of the Board of Directors, working on corporate, wireless and analog strategy, while Rich Beyer, current Elantec president and CEO, will become president and CEO of Intersil. The companies said they share a significant number of customers and have complementary product portfolios. Both companies operated profitably during the 2001 downturn, and said they exited the year with gross margins in excess of 50% and significant cash balances. Intersil said that orders for its products were running above expectations in the current quarter and it now expects first quarter revenues to increase sequentially by 6 to 8%. This compares to its previous guidance of 3 to 5%.
Infineon Technologies, and NewLogic Technologies, a provider of communications intellectual property have signed an agreement for a multitechnology portfolio cross-licensing and royalty agreement encompassing their wireless LAN intellectual property (IP). Under the terms of the agreement, Infineon will incorporate NewLogic's wireless LAN IP, including IEEE 802.11a and 802.11b cores and software, into products targeting various application sectors in the wireless space; and Infineon's advanced IEEE 802.11a signal processing technology will become part of NewLogic's wireless LAN IP product line. According to the companies Dataquest has forecast that 50 million users will use WLAN technology by 2005.
Lucent Technologies and Agere Systems are looking to sell their nanotechnology and electron-beam lithography lab in Murray Hill, New Jersey, as an advanced prototyping foundry that would be run by a consortium of local public and private investors. According to reports, officials are working to broker a deal between five state universities and a number of local companies to set up the 'New Jersey Center for Nanotechnology'.
Sanyo Semiconductor has announced the formation of a new company called SecurityArt, which will apply a range of hardware and software technologies for high levels of security in ID controllers. The systems will be used to secure airports, buildings, and laboratories as well as authenticate passports, visas, and ID cards using biometrics, said Sanyo. SecurityArt will be headquartered in Japan, and will develop, manufacture and market ID controllers featuring a number of multilevel access control systems, including biometrics.
Infineon Technologies has successfully concluded talks with Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturers Winbond Electronics and Mosel Vitelic, both based in Hsinchu. Strengthening its position in the memory market, Infineon has signed a non-binding MoU with Winbond and agreements with Mosel Vitelic to increase its total production capacity for DRAM chips by more than 20 000 wafer starts per month. Infineon will license its advanced DRAM trench technology to Winbond and, beginning in 2003, gain exclusive access to standard DRAM chips manufactured using this technology. Under the terms with Mosel Vitelic, Infineon is increasing its share in the output of their joint venture ProMOS Technologies from 38 to 48%, effective 1 March.
Toshiba, NEC and Fujitsu have agreed on common specifications for the next generation of pseudo-SRAM (PSRAM) devices that are being used as an alternative to standard SRAM to meet the low power requirements of mobiles phones. PSRAMs can support densities up to 16 Mb. The three companies have agreed to define standard memory densities, supply voltage ranges, control-pin names, some functions, packaging and other user-interface specifications.
California Micro Devices has announced it will transition towards a 'fab lite' business model, to give it greater flexibility in responding to high-volume demands. The company struck a foundry agreement with China's Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing (ASMC), Shanghai, which will produce analog semiconductors and 'Application Specific Integrated Passive' (ASIP) devices for the company.
IBM and Xilinx have announced a two-year, multimillion dollar agreement under which IBM will manufacture the newly-announced Xilinx Virtex-II Pro semiconductor products. IBM will manufacture the parts using its most advanced 0,13 and 0,10 mm copper-based chip-making technology. This is the first time IBM will manufacture high-volume parts for a foundry customer using its most advanced processes, normally used in high-end microprocessors, custom chips and memory products, it said.
STMicroelectronics has announced plans to license speech recognition technology from IBM for embedded use in multimedia processor platforms for smart cellular phones and other mobile devices connected to the Internet. ST will license IBM's Embedded ViaVoice speech software technology and collaborate with IBM in development of new speech-enabled products. The two companies also said they will also come to an agreement for marketing of these products.
Eight new member companies have joined the HyperTransport Technology Consortium to promote the HyperTransport I/O link for high-speed communications between integrated circuits. The new members are: Hewlett-Packard, Hifn, NEC Electronics, NurLogic Design, Phoenix Technologies, SandCraft, Schlumberger Semiconductor Solutions, and Seaway Networks. The consortium now has 40 members.
Industry
SEMI, the global industry association of companies that supply manufacturing technology and materials to the world's chipmakers, reported that worldwide sales of semiconductor equipment totalled $28 bn in 2001, representing a year-over-year decline of 41%. Worldwide billings totalled $28,1 bn in 2001, compared with $47,7 bn posted in 2000, said the group. "The industry suffered its worst annual decline last year as end electronics markets and capital spending collapsed. The magnitude of the downturn was amplified in that it followed the single greatest growth year on record in our industry," said Stanley Myers, president and CEO of SEMI.
The Fabless Semiconductor Association's annual survey revealed that demand for foundry-processed wafers will grow 16% in 2002 over shipments in 2001, but bookings will be up just 2% sequentially in the first quarter over Q4 last year. The trade group cautioned that despite optimistic forecasts, it was important to note that recovery during 2002 would nevertheless be gradual.
iSuppli has revised its forecast for the DRAM market from a previous projection of flat revenues, predicting now that it expects revenues for DRAM to increase by about 55% to more than $17,3 bn in 2002, compared to last year's downturn.
Worldwide personal computer shipments will grow slightly more than previously expected to 125,5 million systems in 2002, an increase of 3% over last year compared to a previous forecast of 1,8% growth, according to IDC. Consumer PC shipments are expected to grow 5,3% in 2002, while commercial systems will be up 1,8% from last year. The increased PC unit shipment forecast was in response to stronger-than-expected retail sales in the US and growing demand in Western Europe, said IDC. With the exception of the Asia Pacific market, all other regions showed slightly faster growth rates in personal computer purchases in the final three months of 2001.
The number of at-home workers in the US market has consistently grown over the last twenty years, according to high-tech research firm, In-Stat. Changes in work attitudes and, more importantly, advancements in basic technologies were the main drivers. Roughly 24% of the US workforce was estimated to telecommute some time during the week in 2001, more than 30 million. In-Stat expects this to increase to 28% in 2004, growing to nearly 40 million telecommuters.
Fairchild Semiconductor has announced a new inventory program, called 'Direct Ship Plus', which it says will streamline the supply chain and minimise the warehousing of products. Direct Ship Plus maintains inventory at the manufacturing site rather than at multiple regional warehouses. Fairchild said that this enables its customers to place a 'pull order' from any location worldwide and be assured the product is available and will arrive in three days or less.
Samsung Electronics has filed a patent infringement suit against SanDisk over four flash-memory patents. SanDisk said that there were no grounds and that it would vigorously defend the suit.
Nokia Mobile Phones has said that it will not announce its first 3G handset until late September. Speaking at CeBIT, Matti Alahuhta, president of Nokia Mobile Phones, said that 2002 will mark the start of the 3G rollout, but warned that some European wireless operators will not have 3G services available until 2003 or later due to lagging availability of 3G terminals. He said that the transformation from 2G to 3G services will possibly take several years.
Fairchild Semiconductor's new, first fully-automated warehouse facility in South Korea is equipped with robots and automated storage retrieval systems to handle up to 150 000 products shipments to customers in the Northeast Asia region each quarter. According to the company, once chip products are in the $13m logistics warehouse, robots take over almost exclusively.
Technology
Intel announced at the CeBit trade show, Hannover, that it has fabricated the industry's first fully functional SRAM chips with six-transistor memory cells measuring only 1 mm2. The 52-megabit SRAM test chips are being used for prototyping the chipmaker's new 90 nano-metre (0,09 mm) process technology, called P1262. Intel's 90 nm seven-layer copper-metal technology is being readied exclusively for use in 300 mm wafer fabs.
The University of Leicester, along with two other UK universities are attempting to develop a single electronic chip that mimics biological noses. The basis for the circuit development are 'neuromorphic' processing models being development at Edinburgh. The aim of the three-year research project is to combine odour sensors together with signal processing components on a 1 cm2 chip. The researchers are using what is called 'spiking neuron models' taken from biology. They said that this is an attempt to get away from limitations of more conventional signal processing, including neural networks that are hampered by their lack of temporal processing.
Motorola has revealed a new integrated processor, based on the company's highest performance 32-bit ColdFire core. At the Embedded Systems Conference in San Franscisco, Motorola said the new processor is aimed at expanding the reach of ColdFire-based chips from its existing base in audio systems to industrial control, security, and biometric technologies. The new ColdFire V2 core delivers higher performance of up to 125 Dhrystone 2,1 MIPS at 140 MHz, claims Motorola.
Microchip has launched three ICs for standalone battery chargers. The chips are lithium-ion battery charger ICs with features that address a variety of battery configurations and self-charging packs. According to the company, the ICs contain unique features to maximise battery operating life, reduce PCB area, and reduce overall system costs. The MCP7382X family is available in both 4,1 and 4,2 V options to accommodate Li-Ion batteries with either coke or graphite anodes. They feature low shutdown (1 µA) and operating current (250 µA) to extend battery life and improve efficiency.
Texas Instruments has announced an evaluation kit to support development of higher performance, lower cost optical networking solutions. Using a combination of TI's DSP and DLP (Digital Light Processsing) technologies, the company's Blaze Evaluation Kit provides a number of unique benefits for developing solutions for the optical networking infrastructure market. TI said that the first among these is the ability to create a standard hardware platform that, through its high degree of programmability, allows a broad range of high value-added solutions to be developed. DLP technology uses digital micromirrors based on SRAM memory arrays where, instead of storing bits, the individual locations in the array tilt tiny reflective mirrors about 10° to reflect light for an 'on' and 'off' indication. The Blaze Evaluation Kit comprises a hardware platform, a CD containing the required executables and source and the necessary support documentation. TI's Switched Blaze Grating (SBG) provides 786 432 individually switched 13,8 µm mirrors packaged behind a hermetically-sealed window.
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