TI Enjoys All the Growth in Analog, Others Left in Cold, Firm Says

Online staff -- Electronic News, 12/22/2005

According to this year’s earnings reports for the top analog companies, Texas Instruments (TI) strengthened its lead in the market, while the other players’ rankings maintained their positions, according to Reno, Nevada-based market research firm Databeans.

While the finalized figures are not yet public, the firm estimates that TI gained share this year, from 13.9 percent in 2004 to 16.5 percent this year, representing an annual growth rate of 21 percent with the remainder of the industry seemingly experiencing very little growth since 2004.

TI has credited its sales force and new product offerings for its success this year, citing that the organization has 5 to 6 times the number of sales people in front of customers than its competition, combined with the introduction of more than 100 new high performance analog products over the last 6 months, in all four multi-market categories, including amplifiers, data converters, interface, and power management, Databeans said.

Other players in the top five are number two ranked STMicroelectronics, followed by Infineon Technologies, Philips Semiconductors, and Analog Devices.

Top European analog companies control a combined 28 percent share of the market with Philips recently announcing plans to spin out its semiconductor division, opening up the possibility of a merger, which could shake up the rankings next year. But for the time being, the company remains in fourth position, with just over 6 percent market share, Databeans said.

In 2006, the firm predicts that multi-market products will outpace application specific product sales, which should bode well for the U.S. suppliers, which play primarily in this space.

Databeans expects the analog market to reach nearly $37 billion in 2006 driven by consumer applications and telecommunications, up 15 percent from $31.9 billion this year.