May 25, 2010
The world of TV is changing rapidly. The recent Semico Spin article by my colleague, Michell Prunty, presents the scenario that is playing out. The entire business model for TV is changing. Over a year ago cable TV companies were reporting that their cable subscriptions were dropping, but their internet [...]

A few years ago we ditched our cable subscription. At the time we were constantly annoyed at how often we missed the shows we wanted to watch, and were uninterested in the shows that we were available to watch. The $60 a month seemed like a waste of money –no one in my house was [...]

As the semiconductor industry grows its way out of the 2008/2009 downturn, it’s inevitable that the debate over 450mm wafers will rear its head again. The major objection to 450mm wafers lies in the research and development cost, and the ability of all parties involved to benefit from the large investment.
The industry cannot stagnate at [...]

On May 4th last week I moderated a panel at the GSA Silicon Series Luncheon. The topic was Next-Generation Networks: The Evolution of Mobile Connectivity.
GSA put together a great lineup of speakers and panelists. The keynote speaker was Arpit Joshipura, VP & Head of Strategy, Communications, Ericsson who gave a [...]

Intel gave an in-depth look at their Moorestown platform aimed at Smartphone designs to selected analysts on Monday the 4th of May. My colleague, Tony Massimini, is dealing with the particulars of Moorestown as a platform in a separate Semico Spin article. My article is going to deal with looking at the Moorestown architecture and [...]

The long awaited Moorestown platform has been released by Intel. This was presented at the Intel Developer’s Conference in September 2009. The Moorestown platform consists of the new Z6xx Atom CPU (formerly known as Lincroft), a controller hub (formerly known as Langwell), a mixed signal IC and wireless options.
The mixed signal IC (MSIC) [...]

Semiconductor units are expected to increase by 24% in 2010, while wafer demand is only going to increase by 17%. Why is wafer demand growing at a slower rate?
One reason is that the industry is in a tight capacity situation. Manufacturers find ways to be more efficient when they have to. Certain product categories are [...]