Southern Africa
RCG, an international provider of biometric identification products, security and RFID systems, has entered into the key markets of southern Africa through a joint venture agreement with Techno Investment, a specialist distributor of electronic goods and security solutions. RCG will hold a controlling 53% interest in RCG SA with Techno holding the remaining 47%. The two have agreed to establish a joint venture, RCG Systems SA, and a new regional Johannesburg-based office to market, sell and distribute biometric, RFID and security products and solutions. RCG SA is expected to commence operations by 1 January 2007. RCG anticipates that its southern African venture will broaden the group's overall revenue mix and enhance its geographical footprint.
Sentech CEO, Dr Sebiletso Mokane-Matabane has been awarded the IT Leadership Award at a ceremony held in Sandton on 25 October 2006. The award is in recognition of an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the leadership, growth and development of the South African IT industry in the past year. The Computer Society of South Africa (CSSA), in association with ITWeb and Gartner, has presented the IT Personality of the Year Award annually since 2002.
Overseas
Business
Intel posted third quarter net income of $1,3 bn, up 47% sequentially but down 35% year-to-year. Intel's third quarter revenue was $8,7 bn, up 9% sequentially, compared with Q2, but down 12% year-to-year compared with Q3 of 2005.
Texas Instruments reported third-quarter revenue of $3,76 bn, up 2% compared with the second quarter and up 13% from the same quarter a year ago. TI said the increases were primarily due to continued strong demand for the company's high-performance analog and DSP products. Semiconductor revenue in Q3 was $3,58 bn, an increase of 2% from the prior quarter, which included a $70m royalty settlement.
Freescale Semiconductor reported net sales of $1,62 bn for the third quarter of 2006, compared to $1,60 bn in 2Q 2006 and $1,45 bn in 3Q 2005. Net earnings for the third quarter of 2006 were $257m. Gross margin for 3Q 2006 was 46,1%, compared to 46,0% in 2Q 2006, and 42,9% in 3Q 2005.
STMicroelectronics reported that strong demand in the telecoms, industrial and consumer markets drove its sales in the third quarter and in the first nine months of fiscal 2006. This quarter, ST's revenues climbed 11,8% over last year's Q3. Sales were $2,51 bn. Net income climbed from $89m in Q3 2005 to $207m, an improvement of 133%. The strongest market segment was industrial and others, which contributed 38% to ST's revenues. Consumer contributed 17%, telecom 16% and automotive 14%, said ST.
Companies
Paris-based Schneider Electric, a provider of solutions for electrical distribution, industrial control and automation projects, and American Power Conversion, a leader in power availability solutions, have announced an agreement under which Schneider Electric will acquire all outstanding shares of APC for approximately $6,1 bn. The merger will create an industry-leading business for both single-phase and three-phase uninterruptible power supply systems.
ARM Holdings, a developer of processor related intellectual property, has acquired Soisic, a developer of silicon-on-insulator (SOI) IP. Soisic has developed standard cell libraries, embedded SRAM memory compilers and I/O cells targeted at SOI manufacturing process technologies.
Wireless-LAN chip maker Atheros Communications has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Attansic Technology, a Taiwan-based fabless semiconductor company.
The Swiss-based Schaffner Group has acquired Jacke Transformatoren, strengthening its presence in the growing power quality market.
Andrew Corporation has agreed to acquire EMS Wireless, a division of EMS Technologies, for $50,5m in cash. EMS Wireless is a designer and manufacturer of base station antennas and repeaters for cellular networks in North America.
Conexant Systems has agreed to pay $5m in cash for the packet-switching business of Zarlink Semiconductor.
International Rectifier has sold its Power Control Systems (PCS) business unit to Vishay Intertechnology for $290m in cash. The PCS business includes the company's so-called non-focus products and others such as certain discrete planar MOSFETs, discrete diodes and rectifiers, discrete thyristors, and automotive modules and assemblies.
Google has acquired the California startup that develops online collaboration tools known as Wikis. JotSpot's Wiki tools let users create, modify and even delete information on what others in a group have worked. Terms were not disclosed.
Analog and mixed-signal chip specialist Microsemi has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire PowerDsine for $245m. With the deal, Microsemi expands its portfolio of product offerings to include a broad range of power-over-Ethernet (PoE) solutions.
Omron has reached a preliminary agreement to acquire the semiconductor business assets of Seiko Epson's consolidated subsidiary, Yasu Semiconductor. Omron manufactures and markets custom ICs that offer functionality and cost-performance not found in general-purpose semiconductors, as well as MEMS products such as flow sensors and pressure sensors that use semiconductor processes in their manufacture. The asset to be acquired is the semiconductor factory owned by YSC in Japan.
Design-for-manufacturability vendor PDF Solutions has completed the acquisition of Si Automation in a cash and stock deal worth approximately $35,6m.
Aricent is the new name of the software development and solutions business of Flextronics International, following the acquisition of 85% of the business in September by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and Sequoia Capital. Flextronics retains 15% ownership. The transaction valued the entire business at approximately $900m.
LG Electronics, Matsushita Electric Industrial (Panasonic), NEC, Samsung Electronics, SiBeam, Sony and Toshiba have announced they are working together in a special interest group called WirelessHD. The group is developing a specification to enable high-definition audio/video streaming and high-speed content transmission for consumer electronics devices using an unlicensed frequency band at 60 GHz. WirelessHD plans to complete the specifications around March 2007.
Cambridge Consultants, a design and development company in the electronics and healthcare sector has formed a venture capital fund with Esprit Capital Partners.
Tyco Electronics and Versatile Systems announced the expansion of the SyncSeer system capabilities by adding M/A-COM RFID components to the SyncSeer system. The SyncSeer system is an intelligent, technology infrastructure and information management system comprised of hardware and software for companies in the entertainment, retail, health care, government and education marketplaces. Under the agreement, M/A-COM will provide multiprotocol fixed and embedded UHF RFID readers and antennas.
Cetecom Spain has changed its name to AT4 wireless.
STMicroelectronics has licensed Samsung's advanced OneNAND flash memory, to meet increasing demand in various applications including wireless. OneNAND's architecture features NAND core with SRAM and logic elements to emulate a NOR flash interface. It delivers a sustained data read speed of 108 MBps and a write speed of 10 MBps, according to Samsung.
Industry
Worldwide chip sales rose to $21,4 bn in September, an increase of 9,3% from September 2005 and a 4,2% increase from the $20,5 bn reported in August 2006, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA). Global semiconductor sales in Q3 of 2006 were $64,1 bn, compared to $59,3 bn in Q2 of this year, an increase of 8%. For the first nine months of 2006, sales totalled $154 bn - an increase of 8,5% from the $142 bn reported for the first nine months of 2005. The SIA said that strong demand for consumer products, including cellphones, MP3 players, and personal computers, were major drivers of increased chip sales.
The World Semiconductor Trade Statistics group has reduced its semiconductor forecast for 2006, 2007 and 2008. The global semiconductor market is now expected to grow by 8,5% to $247 bn in 2006, according to the WSTS. Projected growth in the worldwide semiconductor market will moderately increase to 8,6% in 2007 and culminate with 12,1% in 2008, according to the group.
China's LCD-TV market is poised to grow at a 49% CAGR during the 2005 to 2010 period, according to market research firm iSuppli. The firm said it expects China's LCD-TV shipments to increase from 1,4 million units last year, to more than 20 million in 2010.
Third-quarter worldwide mobile phone shipments totalled 254,9 million units, up 8% sequentially and 21% year-to-year, announced market research firm IDC. Based on the strength of the quarter, IDC continues to project that total mobile phone shipments will surpass 1 billion for the year.
According to IMS Research's latest Bluetooth report, the number of systems shipping this year with Bluetooth could double the 250 million units sold in 2005 and hit 1,5 bn units by 2010. However, wireless USB (WUSB) could become a speed bump on Bluetooth's ramp, it said. The current Bluetooth Version 2.0 + Enhanced Data Rate achieves a data-rate of 3 Mbps.
The outlook for NAND flash memory is bleak for 2006 and 2007, according to International Data Corp (IDC). It said the NAND market is expected to decrease by 17% in 2006, 'due to the lack of outstanding demand drivers and the suppliers' race towards capacity expansion.'
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced the first update in seven years to its Energy Star specifications for computers and related equipment. On average, with the new Energy Star spec, qualifying computer equipment will be 65% more efficient than conventional models. According to the EPA the US now has more than 180 million computers in use; they consume nearly 58 billion kWh per year, or about 2% of annual US electricity consumption.
Thomson's Technicolor Content Services has rolled out its new proprietary Tiger AVC encoding system for high-quality compression of high-definition video for use in HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc products. The new Tiger AVC optical disc compression tool is based on MPEG4-H.264/AVC technology.
India's Department of Information Technology (DIT) is launching a national grid computing platform, called the Garuda National Grid Computing Initiative (www.garudaindia.in) that will link 45 universities and research institutes through a high-speed connection. It will support IPv4 and IPv6 applications and the communication backbone will link institutes in 17 Indian cities, according to the DIT. The aim is to create a testbed for research on technologies, architectures, standards and applications in grid computing.
The Centre for Telecommunications Value-Chain Research (CTVR) in Ireland has received a 90 000 Euro grant from Enterprise Ireland's 'Proof of Concept/Commercialisation Fund' to commercialise a special ultra-wideband antenna it is developing.
Dr. Hossam Haick, of the Technion Israel Institute of Technology, has been awarded a grant of 1,73m Euros from the EU for the development of an artificial olfactory system (an electronic nose) that can sniff out cancer. This is said to be the largest grant received from the EU by an Israeli researcher. The goal is to create an instrument based on nanometer-sized sensors that can diagnose different cancers and even determine at what stage the disease is using breath samples. This will allow the diagnosis to be carried out at a very early stage before a tumour has begun to spread.
Freescale Semiconductor has announced that it has shipped more than $1 bn in flash-based, 32-bit automotive microcontrollers built on its Power Architecture technology. It said this milestone was achieved in just seven years after launching its first Power Architecture MCU.
Vishay Intertechnology has filed a patent infringement law suit against certain firms and individuals selling appliances manufactured in China using infrared receiver module technology. The suit alleges that they have infringed on a German Vishay patent for internal metal shielding that prevents electromagnetic phenomena from interfering with the operation of the infrared receiver.
Clare Instruments is offering a free booklet that covers practical issues associated with the EN50191 standard for the installation and operation of test equipment used in the design and development of electronic products. Available from website (www.clare.co.uk/comp_solutions_form.asp), this is an updated version that should be of interest to those with responsibility for ensuring the safe operation of electrical test equipment in manufacturing, compliance, repair and design organisations.
Technology
Microsoft has rolled out Windows Embedded CE 6.0, claimed to be the most extensive upgrade to its realtime operating system (RTOS) in recent years. With the new release, Microsoft is opening the entire Windows CE kernel through the company's 'shared source' program. The company has also re-engineered the kernel to support up to 32 000 simultaneous processes with 2 GB of virtual memory address space per process.
Texas Instruments has announced the lowest-power addition to its line of low-power digital signal processors (DSPs). The new 12 x 12 mm TMS320C5506 DSP operates at 108 MHz. In addition to 128 KB of on-chip memory and a full-speed USB 2.0 interface, it features very low standby power (0,120 mW at 108 MHz and 1,2 V) and very low core and memory operating power (for example, 58 mW at 108 MHz).
Technology Research Laboratories has announced the development of a new rugged, long-life battery that would be ideal for plug-in hybrid vehicle use. The batteries are apparently fabricated almost entirely from carbon and plastic which make them far less polluting than typical electrochemical batteries. They also operate on physical chemistry principles different from conventional lead-acid batteries, and have the ability to withstand severe electrical abuse such as total discharge without seeing any damage or degradation in performance.
Samsung Electronics has reportedly developed a high-resolution dual capacity display that allows 3D images to be viewed on a flat-panel display without special filter glasses. Samsung has already built a 17" monitor prototype of the 3D display, which uses binocular disparity and time sequential 'lens plus barrier' systems, according to the reports. The new 3D display is expected to hit the market in 2009 when new demand for a wide range of IT-related applications such as online games, e-shopping and 3D web content will be ready.
Declared by HDbeat.com to be 'the ultimate hook-up and explanation guide for a HDTV based home theatre,' homeTheaterNetwork.com's expansive connection diagram has been updated. In addition to all the typical home theatre equipment such as a HDTV, speakers, DVD players, and gaming consoles, it is available with multiple new zones, ranging from a networked kitchen to a private home theatre room (see www.hometheaternetwork.com).
Scientists at Duke University claim to have demonstrated the first working 'invisibility cloak.' The cloak deflects microwave beams so they flow around a 'hidden' object inside with little distortion, making it appear almost as if nothing were there at all. The cloaking technique works by using a metamaterial as a shield to redirect microwaves around the cloak. The metamaterials are precisely arranged in a series of concentric circles that confer specific electromagnetic properties. The researchers said they hope to create invisibility cloaks for other types of electromagnetic radiation, causing even visible light to flow around shielded regions.
Samsung Electronics has announced that its three solid state disk (SSD) drives have been officially recognised by Microsoft as fully qualified Windows-compatible peripherals. The SSDs have a data read speed of 57 MBps and data write speed of 32 MBps. Microsoft has certified two 32 GB SSDs and a 16 GB small-type SSD.
The Department of Energy's Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC) has begun work on the world's first X-ray-free electron laser. Scheduled for completion in 2009, the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS) will produce ultra-fast, ultra-short pulses of X-rays said to be a billion times brighter than any other source on earth. The LCLS will enable scientists to take images of atoms and molecules in motion, shedding light on fundamental processes.
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