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Thursday, April 2, 2015

Samsung anticipates sales boost following Apple chip deal

Samsung is planning to start producing chips using its 14nm manufacturing process at the end of the year. It seems the company has managed to secure a deal with Apple and it anticipates a notable sales boost once it begins to deliver on it.

Kim Ki-nam, President of Samsung’s semiconductor business told reporters at the company’s HQ in Seoul that profits “will improve positively” once the deal goes through. Apple isn’t the only Samsung 14nm chip client, however, with Qualcomm and AMD also signing to use the company’s 14nm manufacturing process around the end of the year.

Mr. Kim didn’t specify when Samsung will start mass production of the chips for Apple and the rest of its clients. Currently, Samsung is responsible for around 30% of the Apple A8 chips, while TSMC is making 70%, according to sources familiar with the matter.

Quite possibly, Samsung is going to manufacture the successor of the Apple A8 chip and sources who’ve spoken to ZDNet Korea have confirmed this.

This is good news for Samsung’s semiconductor division, as its Exynos series haven’t been enjoying as much exposure as the company would’ve liked. Additionally, Apple has been pursuing alternative to Samsung options when it comes to delivering chips and displays for its iPad and iPhone flagships.

Source

Samsung plans to invest 14 7 billion in a new chip plant

Reuters reports that Samsung is planning to invest the gargantuan $14.7 billion in a new chip-making factory over the next three years. That’s the biggest investment the company has ever made into a single plant.

According to Samsung’s plans, the plant is going to be built in Pyeongtaek, which is 75 km south of Seoul and create 150,000 jobs (about a third of the city’s population). Interestingly, the company hasn’t made a final decision yet on whether the factory will create processors or memory chips.

But with Samsung estimating the new factory is going to be finished by the second half of 2017, there’s a lot of time to make this decision. Rumors suggests Samsung is going to be making the upcoming Apple A9 chip, which will go into the company’s future phones and tablets.

The company is also mass producing chipsets using its 20nm manufacturing process and is said to be producing as much as 30% of the Apple A8 chipset. If all goes as planned, the company will launch its 16nm FinFET manufacturing process some time in 2015.