
Semiconductor Consolidation’s Aftermath - craigjb
http://semiengineering.com/consolidations-aftermath/
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SemiconductorR
Earlier article on semiconductor consolidation discusses rising costs & the
difficulty of shrinking features are changing the dynamics of who buys IP,
tools and chips

[http://semiengineering.com/the-impact-of-
consolidation/](http://semiengineering.com/the-impact-of-consolidation/)

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craigjb
It's interesting how the article you linked mentions cheap capital has enabled
consolidation. I was always under the impression that cheap capital would
spawn a plethora of startups and new differentiation. I guess this system has
two stable states...

Also, now more than ever, startups can enter the fabless market since TSMC and
other foundries are open to even small customers. I think we may just be
seeing a slowdown on new entries because the engineering cost, not just tool
or IP cost, is monstrous for new chips (i.e. innovative features, not just
coupling IP cores). Now I want to go research what portions of IC designs
require the most time now. My hunches: formal requirements definition and
analog design.

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Scaevolus
Why are Dell and EMC considered part of the semiconductor industry?

