SoylentNews
SoylentNews is people
https://soylentnews.org/

takyon writes:

GlobalFoundries Inc. has agreed to acquire International Business Machines Corp.'s microelectronics division. Under the terms of the agreement, GlobalFoundries will become "the exclusive server processor semiconductor technology provider [to IBM] for 22 nanometer (nm), 14nm and 10nm semiconductors for the next 10 years."

From Marketplace:

The largest contract chip maker, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, quadrupled its capital spending in the last five years from $2.5 billion to $10 billion. If you are a company like IBM you have to look at those numbers and ask yourself, does it make sense to take a loss in chip making when you could just buy them from someone else?

IBM's answer as of today is no, it doesn't.

From AnandTech:

By divesting themselves of their semiconductor manufacturing business, IBM is cutting loose a business that is losing them money, but it is also a necessary step to enable the consolidation of manufacturing rather than a dissolution of the business entirely. Though in better shape than IBM's business, GlobalFoundries has their own struggles with technology and volume, so taking on IBM's business will allow the two businesses to be consolidated and ideally a larger, stronger semiconductor manufacturer to emerge.

Overall then, the deal sees GlobalFoundries taking on everything related to semiconductor manufacturing from IBM except for IBM's semiconductor R&D division, which IBM will hold on to.

GlobalFoundries spun out of AMD in 2009. IBM had been negotiating the transfer of its chipmaking division for some time, and has already sold off its PC and x86 server businesses to Lenovo. IBM has attempted to bolster its Power chips by licensing the architecture through the ARM-like OpenPower Consortium. Earlier this month, IBM announced Power8 servers that would incorporate Nvidia GPU acceleration.

1. "takyon" - https://soylentnews.org/~takyon/
2. "has agreed" - http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/45110.wss
3. "Marketplace" - http://www.marketplace.org/topics/business/ibm-will-no-longer-make-its-own-chips
4. "AnandTech" - http://www.anandtech.com/show/8631/globalfoundries-acquires-ibms-semiconductor-manufacturing-business-ibm-bows-out
5. "spun out of AMD in 2009" - http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/02/20/amd_vote_in_favor_of_the_foundry_spin/
6. "IBM had been negotiating the transfer" - http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/10/20/ibm_set_to_palm_off_chip_unit/
7. "PC" - http://www.lenovo.com/news/us/en/2005/04/ibm_lenovo.html
8. "x86 server" - http://www.anandtech.com/show/8575/lenovo-acquisition-of-ibms-x86-server-business-closing-october-1
9. "OpenPower Consortium" - http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/08/06/ibm_opens_up_power_chips_armstyle_to_take_on_chipzilla/
10. "Earlier this month" - http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/10/03/ibm_and_nvidia_team_on_power8_servers/
11. "Nvidia GPU acceleration" - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CUDA

printed from SoylentNews, IBM Pays GlobalFoundries $1.5 Billion to Take Over Chip Division on 2024-04-16 11:37:01