Announcing their agreement to harmonise Flash memory chip designs (CI No 2,440), Advanced Micro Devices Inc, Sunnyvale, and SGS-Thomson Microelectronics NV say that their standardised products will use Advanced Micro’s Am29Fxxx architecture, which conforms to Joint Electronic Device Engineering Council standards, as a basis, but the two companies will independently develop compatible products. Both claim the agreement will hasten growth in the worldwide Flash memory market, which is already growing at 35% a year, especially at the lower voltage end where, they claim, most design is taking place. Additionally, both companies believe Flash memory is rapidly becoming a commodity product are gearing up production facilities to meet the expected demand. SGS says its Phoenix, Arizona wafer fabrication facility is now capable of producing devices from the Am29Fxxx family. The accord brings to three the number of major memory suppliers supporting Advanced Micro’s architecture, thanks to the company’s agreement with Fujitsu Ltd made in 1992. SGS says its co-operation agreement of last year with Mitsubishi Electric Corp to develop 16M-bit Flash memory is complementary, rather than in addition to this agreement. The standardisation agreement, say the companies, is a direct result of customer demand for compatible single power supply Flash devices, especially from the cellular phone industry. Advanced Micro and SGS claim their agreement will provide the market with multiple sources, adding that small players in the field are likely to use the harmonised architecture. Advanced Micro and SGS say the advantages of the AM29Fxxx architecture are its compatibility with JEDEC standards, which also makes moves to higher densities easier; system level costs are reduced because no additional power supply or DC-to-DC converter is needed; and embedded algorithms automate the erase and program operations on the chip preventing any accidental drift during procedures. Accidental erasure by spurious signals from the hardware is not possible, says Advanced Micro. The accord seems to be an attempt by the two companies to squeeze Intel Corp’s share of the Flash memory market, which last year was around 51%. SGS-Thomson’s Flash marketing director said: Intel does not fit into this agreement. Last year Advanced Micro’s share of the $1,260m market was 35% while SGS had only 4%. Advanced Micro’s UK managing director Dave Brand said: We both expect to increase our market share and expect to be within a few per cent of Intel’s. Intel has yet to deliver its universal capacity Flash memory and Advanced Micro and SGS are keen to point this out, adding that such flexibility benefits only the manufacturer, but not the customer who has to pay for silicon she may not use. However, neither company would be drawn on cost, saying that in the past, unrealistic pricing structures had been promised by the industry that had then failed to be delivered.
