Thanks to the increasingly aggressive management of costs, capacity and competitive positioning, the global semiconductor business is currently more profitable than it has been at any time in the last decade, market researchers at the El Segundo, Calif. market research company said. In addition to capacity management, iSuppli believes the profitability rebound reflects a more fundamental shift in the competitive structure of the global semiconductor industry.
Macroeconomic factors in 2009 dictated market conditions that were independent of the technology business therefore comparisons with 2007 and 2008 provide a more accurate depiction of 2010 semiconductor market conditions, market researchers at iSuppli believe.
To improve its ability to serve flat panel display and thin film solar photovoltaic customers in Asia while capitalizing on Taiwan’s location, talent pool and supply chain infrastructure, capital equipment giant Applied Materials Inc. announced Wednesday that its newly expanded Tainan Manufacturing Center in Tainan, Taiwan is now open.
With the industry still recovering from the recession, design tool and methodology innovation is continuing to shift to tight collaboration between semiconductor companies, EDA vendors, and foundries.
Claiming that HTC Corp. infringed 20 patents related to the Apple iPhone user interface, underlying architecture and hardware, the Cupertino, CA-based computer and mobile phone maker filed a lawsuit against the Taiwan-based mobile handset producer with the US ITC and US District Court in Delaware.