Semiconductor

DALLAS-L.M. Ericsson said it has agreed to combine Texas Instruments’ semiconductors with its mobile platforms in a memorandum of understanding. “TI’s wireless digital signal processor and analog products and proven semiconductor manufacturing have enabled superior performance in Ericsson phones for …

MURRAY HILL, N.J.—Lucent Technologies Inc. said its bank group has given it the go-ahead to renegotiate its $4 billion loan by recording the business restructuring and other charges.The green light also allows the company to change the conditions to spin …

Japan Toshiba Corp. said it would slash production of its domestic dynamic random access memory chip by 60 percent as part of its response to a flagging economy. The company said it would shut down a production line at its …

SAN JOSE, California, United States—Analyst firm Gartner Dataquest said worldwide semiconductor revenue this year will be $168.1 billion, a 26-percent drop from last year.“There are few signs of growth in design wins. Component prices and lead times are still low, …

BERLIN-Siemens AG posted a third-quarter net profit of $1.4 billion, enhanced by its transfer of stake from its semiconductor company Infineon to its pension fund. Excluding exceptional items or money spent on Infineon, the company posted a $430 million loss. …

SAN DIEGO-Qualcomm Inc. said it has decided not to spin off its semiconductor business, and the company’s chief operating officer, Richard Sulpizio, resigned his position. Anthony S. Thornley will replace Sulpizio as COO in what the company describes as part …

Analysts wonder whether Motorola Inc. can reconcile its handset and semiconductor businesses in light of its announcement to sell its semiconductor technology to other manufacturers, including its rivals. “That’s where the confusion comes in,” noted Jane Zweig, chief executive officer …

NEW YORK-Oki Semiconductor, Sunnyvale, Calif., will make commercially available in September its new module, compatible with version 1.1 of the Bluetooth standard for short-range wireless applications. The Bluetooth module, which measures 18-by-38 millimeters, incorporates a Bluetooth RF and baseband controller, …

As a counterfoil to a slackening economy, chip makers are striking up alliances, shrinking their product sizes and paring down prices to differentiate themselves in the face of layoffs, reduced spending and plant shutdowns. Some of the alliances are between …

The European and North American wireless local area network worlds got a little closer last week thanks to Germany-based Systemonic AG, which introduced a baseband processor supporting both the North American standard 802.11a and European equivalent HiperLan2 wireless networking protocol …

Two major equipment vendors, one in the United States and the other in Europe, continued to walk on clay feet last week. Motorola Inc. announced a second-quarter loss while Marconi plc’s stock fell, triggering speculations of a takeover, lawsuits from …

TOKYO-NEC Corp. said it could cut jobs at a semiconductor plant in Scotland and put off an increase in chip output at a Chinese joint venture as part of its restructuring efforts. NEC had said in April that the Scottish …

NEW YORK-Although it recently affirmed its ratings on Semtech Corp., a wireless device semiconductor maker, Standard & Poor’s Corp. revised downward its ratings outlook for the company to reflect “stresses” in its target markets. Semtech, headquartered in Newbury Park, Calif., …

DENVER, United States-The third-generation (3G) hype is much less intense than a year ago, as executives and engineers get down to the nitty-gritty of making the new technology-and their business plans-work. It is a time of industry transition and stealth-mode …

In a triangular deal, German-based operator T-Mobil is partnering with Agere Systems to adopt Samsung’s General Packet Radio Service class 8-cell phone. The phone, which will be made available commercially during this quarter, uses Agere’s semiconductor chips and software. The …

Cellemetry L.L.C. Numerex Corp. announced that its subsidiary, Cellemetry L.L.C., will incorporate Ida Corp.’s Global Trakit Data Center in its Cellemetry network, enabling automatic vehicle location and remote asset management. According to Geoff Girdler, head of the Numerex wireless communication …

Blackstone Blackstone announced Elaine Moncayo has joined its marketing department as marketing coordinator. In her new position, she will be responsible for internal marketing, including newsletter, brochures, Web site updates and presentations. She will work with both Blackstone employees and …

Cambridge Silicon Radio introduced its MicroSira and CompactSira development tools for integrating Bluetooth functionality into a range of personal computer and personal digital assistant applications. Both products contain CSR’s single chip solution, BlueCore01 and development software. Transilica Inc.’s OneChip Bluetooth …

NEW YORK-Global semiconductor sales dropped 4.7 percent in April to $13.72 billion from $14.4 billion in March, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association. The deepest dives were in the Americas with an 8.8-percent decline in March, according to the report.

Manufacturers realize that making devices smaller and equipped for high-data speed is becoming as important as efficiency across technology lines. Tropian Inc., a semiconductor company that offers advanced radio-frequency products to the wireless industry, has developed a multimode transmitter for …

Wireless networking recently received a boost from the Federal Communications Commission, which said it was proposing new rules regarding frequency hopping spread spectrum systems operating in the 2.4 GHz band that would allow faster data rates than currently available. The …

NEW YORK-The worst is just behind or dead ahead for technology stocks, depending on whether you believe the bull or the bear who shared the dais at the New York Society of Security Analysts’ “Internet Economy Conference.” Federal Reserve Board …

HILLSBORO, Ore.-Under a $1.3 billion deal, chip maker TriQuint Semiconductor Inc. will merge with wireless components maker Sawtek Inc., a move the companies said will allow them to create highly integrated radio-frequency products that will benefit wireless manufacturers with significantly …

NEW YORK-With the personal computer sector maturing, CIBC World Markets views “communications applications as the next driver of the semiconductor industry,” notwithstanding the current but temporary slowdown, said N. Quinn Bolton, semiconductor equipment analyst for the investment bank. “There is …

Intel Corp. may be one of the newer chip players in the wireless space, but it already is attracting a green eye from the older mainstays. Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and others have seen how Intel Corp. has dominated the …