DSP continues to outperform in micro-logic market

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20 September 2006 News

Databeans, a semiconductor market intelligence supplier, has released a new study on the digital signal processor (DSP) market that describes the current market conditions for communications electronics and communications DSP products.

The DSP has increasingly gained importance in the micro-logic market. In fact, according to the report, the DSP market bypassed the largest market for microcontrollers, the 8-bit market, in 2002; and while the overall microcontroller market remains the second largest contributor to worldwide processor revenue, DSP is quickly gaining share. While this segment, which is included in worldwide processor revenue, along with microprocessors and microcontrollers, is the smallest contributor, it is outpacing the other two in terms of growth, with a compound annual growth rate of 14% over the next five years, compared to 10% for microprocessors and 8% for microcontrollers.

DSP plays a significant role in different kinds of electronics, but has earned its position in the semiconductor market from the mobile phone application. Nokia is the largest DSP customer, followed by Motorola, Samsung, LG Electronics, and BenQ (Siemens). And although wireless will remain the real application driver for the DSP, other applications also incorporate this technology. Digital audio, IP phones, medical diagnostic imaging, and digital video all use DSP technology.

The largest market for DSP by far is the wireless communications market, and this is due to the large volume of mobile phones that ship every year. The DSP performs the rapid signal processing required in digital voice transmission. Typical platforms include products that operate at over 100 MHz for handsets and up to 1 GHz for base stations. Handset applications use 16-bit products with performance up to 600 MIPS.

Databeans estimates that wireless mobile phones will contribute over 85% to overall communications DSP worldwide revenue, which is estimated at over $7 bn for 2006. Overall communications DSP revenue, comprised of mobile phones, wireless infrastructure, short-range wireless, other wireless, and wired applications, is estimated at 80% of the entire DSP market, which is expected to reach over $9 bn this year.

Texas Instruments commands the mobile phone DSP market, with about two out of every three phones containing a TI DSP. DSP revenue from the mobile phone market is expected to increase from over $6 bn this year to twice this amount by 2011. This growth would average to a compound annual growth rate of 15%. Other applications are growing at the same or better rate, in terms of generating DSP revenue; but for the duration of the forecast period, the majority share of DSP revenue is expected to come from mobile phones.

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DSP continues to outperform in micro-logic market

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