x86 Headline NewsFor the week of May 25, 1998 |
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x86 Weekly News Collected By Robert R. Collins |
Week of May 25, 1998 |
Older News |
May 29, 1998 | ||
Intel cuts 650 jobs from PC plantBy Kurt Oeler May 28, 1998 |
Intel will lay off up to 650
manufacturing employees at a Dupont, Washington,
facility, the first group of some 3,000 positions the
company expects to trim from its rolls over the next five
months. In August, Intel will begin phasing out its PC and server computer manufacturing operations in Dupont, where the company completes the assembly of chips, hard drives, and other components. Intel does not sell these products under its own name, but markets them to third-party vendors who brand them independently. |
See Today's Related Stories |
Intel case in FTC chief's handsBy Michael Kanellos May 28, 1998 |
A Federal Trade Commission decision on
whether to file an antitrust case against Intel has moved
to the second-to-last phase in the process, making it
possible for a case to be filed in the next few weeks. The FTC investigative staff has sent its recommendations to William J. Baer, the director of the Bureau of Competition for the FTC, sources close to the investigation said. |
See Today's Related Stories |
Intergraph CEO: FTC Probes Intel On Its OwnBy Edward F. Moltzen May 29, 1998 |
Intergraph's CEO said his company, which
is suing Intel for anticompetitive behavior, has not
actively helped the U.S. Federal Trade Commission in its
probe of the chip maker's business practices. Jim Meadlock said he only had one brief conversation with FTC officials about his Intergraph's claims against Intel, but is assuming the agency has culled publicly available records about the Intergraph-Intel lawsuit in federal court. |
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Investors dismiss FTC vs.IntelBy Reuters May 29, 1998 |
Investors yesterday appeared to shrug
off, for now, a looming lawsuit by the Federal Trade
Commission against Intel, whose chips are inside more
than 80 percent of the world's personal computers. Government lawyers are preparing charges that the world's largest semiconductor company illegally abused its monopoly power to hurt its rivals, sources familiar with the case told Reuters late Tuesday. |
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Intel files counterfeit chip suitBy Erich Luening May 28, 1998 |
Chip behemoth Intel today filed suit and
won a restraining order against an alleged racket that
tampers with its microprocessors and stamps them with
false speed ratings before selling them at higher prices. Intel lawyers reportedly told Australian Federal Court Justice Brian Tamberlin that a "remarking" scheme involving Pentium and Pentium II chips originated in Asia and had spread to Australia. Since reports of fake chips first surfaced, fears of counterfeit proliferation have spread. |
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AMD revs up Intel rivalry with K6-2By Lisa DiCarlo May 28, 1998 |
Advanced Micro Devices Inc.'s K6-2 chip,
announced today, is not only a watershed product for the
company, but it also marks the beginning of a campaign to
compete on more levels with Intel Corp. The K6-2, with 21 integrated 3D instructions called 3DNow, is the first nonclone processor developed by an Intel X86 competitor. Cyrix Corp. and Centaur Technology Inc. will use the 3DNow! extensions in forthcoming processors. |
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OPTi says potential buyer ends talk in sale of groupBy Will Wade May 28, 1998 |
OPTi Inc. here announced late yesterday
that a possible deal to sell its systems logic group had
fallen through. The company has been in discussions for
the past three months with an unnamed potential buyer,
and even received an offer for the business unit, but
that offer was withdrawn. Bernard Marren, president and CEO of OPTi, said he did not know why the offer was withdrawn. However, he did note that rumors of the deal had reached some of OPTi's shareholders. |
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Today's Related Stories | ||
Intel to cut up to 650 jobs at DuPont siteMay 28, 1998 |
Intel Corp. plans to close its computer
manufacturing division at its 2-year-old plant here,
which will cost as many as 650 employees their jobs. The computer chip maker will continue its research and development operation at the plant south of Tacoma, which employs about 1,800 people, Intel spokesman Bill Calder said. He said Intel plans to contract with an outside vendor to perform the computer assembly work. The assembly line will be phased out by the end of the year. |
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Intel's business practices face government scrutinyBy George Leopold and Alexander Wolfe May 28, 1998 |
The antitrust lawsuit that the Federal
Trade Commission is expected to file against Intel Corp.
sets the stage for another government-industry showdown
over competition in the U.S. computer industry, and
raises questions over whether Intel and partner Microsoft
Corp. should be compelled to change the way they deal
with PC makers. Industry and legal observers agree that
Intel's bitter legal battle with Intergraph Corp.
(Huntsville, Ala.) was a turning point in the FTC's
decision to pursue an antitrust case against Intel. In
that case, Judge Edwin Nelson of U.S. District Court
ruled on April 10 that Intel had engaged in
"anti-competitive practices" by attempting to
extend its monopoly in microprocessors to other markets.
Intel is appealing that decision. |
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FTC poised to launch antitrust lawsuit against IntelBy Tom Schmidt and Margaret Kane May 28, 1998 |
It's looking more and more as if Intel
Corp.'s turn is next. In the shadow of the recent antitrust assault on Microsoft Corp., the Federal Trade Commission appears on the verge of taking the next step in bringing its own antitrust action against Intel, the other half of the so-called Wintel duopoly. As early as Friday, FTC staffers are expected to recommend a two-pronged suit against the world's leading microprocessor maker, according to sources close to the investigation and published reports. |
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Federal Trade Commission Readies Intel SuitBy Mary Mosquera May 28, 1998 |
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is
expected to slap Intel with an antitrust lawsuit for
allegedly using its monopoly power illegally against PC
makers that use its microprocessors. An FTC spokeswoman said Thursday she could not comment on agency investigations. Howard Morse, former assistant director of the FTC's Bureau of Competition and now an attorney at Drinker, Biddle & Reath in Washington, D.C., said any antitrust suit the government would bring against Intel, if it did act, would draw upon legal proceedings related to Intergraph, a workstation maker based in Huntsville, Ala. |
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Federal Trade Commission Readies Intel SuitBy Christine Casatelli May 28, 1998 |
The U.S. government is gearing up to
launch another high-tech antitrust suit -- this time
against Intel, according to The New York Times Thursday. The Federal Trade Commission is reportedly getting ready to charge the chip maker (company profile) with using its dominant position to withhold important technical information about its microprocessors from some computer manufacturers. |
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May 28, 1998 | ||
FTC to proceed with Intel suitMercury News Staff and Wire Reports May 28, 1998 |
The Federal Trade Commission is moving
ahead with plans for a tightly focused antitrust suit
against Intel Corp., despite indications from the company
that it would change some of the business practices at
issue. The suit would accuse Santa Clara-based Intel of withholding key technical information about its microprocessors from at least two computer manufacturers with which Intel was involved in patent disputes. Because of Intel's overwhelming dominance in the microprocessor market, manufacturers are essentially unable to design new computers without that information. |
See Today's Related Stories |
New AMD chip breaks from IntelBy Tom Quinlan May 27, 1998 |
Advanced Micro Devices will attempt to
escape Intel Corp.'s long shadow today when it introduces
a new processor ''unlike anything Intel has.'' According to analysts and sources familiar with AMD's new processors, the K6-2 chips and AMD's 3D-Now technology should provide enough power at a low enough price that AMD can start moving into the more expensive and lucrative market for multimedia PCs. The chips are impressive enough that at least two major PC manufacturers -- International Business Machines Corp. and Fujitsu Ltd. -- will announce plans to use the chips in PCs on Thursday, support AMD was unable to get when it first announced the K6 line last April. |
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New AMD pricing undercuts IntelBy Michael Kanellos May 27, 1998 |
A window of opportunity may open up this
week for Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) when it unveils the
new K6-2 processor, although analysts caution that
aggressive pricing by Intel could quickly shut it again. Increasingly found in sub-$1,000 PCs from top-tier vendors such as Compaq and IBM, AMD's processor line could take another step forward with the K6-2. Incorporating the new 3D-Now instruction set, the chip is expected to be a staple for the next round of high-performance, low-cost PCs. |
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MMX, Celeron PCs turn wisdom on its headBy James Niccolai May 27, 1998 |
IBM and Acer America this week released
business PCs that dip well below the $1,000 price mark.
But a $300 price gap between the offerings seems to
contradict conventional wisdom -- that newer processors
and more expensive PCs equal faster performance. IBM's PC 300 GL is expected to retail at $969 and sports Intel's recently introduced 266-MHz Celeron processor. Acer's AcerEntra 3000 series starts at $699 and runs on the older, 233-MHz Pentium MMX processor. Although Acer's Pentium MMX machine costs less, it will likely run business applications faster than IBM's Celeron-based PC, said Michael Slater, industry analyst and founder of Microprocessor Report, in Sebastopol, Calif. |
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Today's Related Stories | ||
Report: Intel FTC Staff Review Will Be Within Next WeekBy Kristin Balleisen May 27, 1998 |
Welcome to Beltway Bootup. WHEN IT RAINS: It just hasn't been a good year for Wintel. First, Microsoft Corp. is sued under the Sherman Act. Now it looks as if Intel Corp. is closer to facing more monopoly-abuse charges. Sources tell Reuters that the Federal Trade Commission's top staff will review evidence against Intel within the next week. If the case moves forward, expect narrow charges to be brought in front of an administrative law judge with broader charges possible later. Meanwhile, Intel's got to deal with competition. As the sub-$1,000 PC market continues to exhibit legs, another Intel nightmare could come true as PC makers turn to other chipmakers for the low-end machines. "You can make money at $999 with an Intel processor, but at $799 and below, you need one of the other guys," says analyst Mike Feibus. |
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May 27, 1998 | ||
Intel antitrust case heats upBy Reuters May 26, 1998 |
Government lawyers are preparing charges
that Intel illegally abused monopoly power to hurt
rivals, sources familiar with the case said today. Within the next week, top staff at the Federal Trade Commission will review the proposed charges against the company, which makes the microprocessors running four out of every five PCs, the sources said. |
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AMD
claims K6-2 releases it from 25% rule
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AMD will release its K6-2 processor
tomorrow but details of its specification and pricing
have already leaked out. The first iteration of the processor, will be a part that runs at 333MHz priced at $369 in units of 1,000 and that will have a knock on effect on other members of AMD's CPU family. According to the leaks, the 300MHz part will cost $281/1000 and the 266MHz chip $185/1000. |
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AMD expanding horizons in low endBy Michael Kanellos May 26, 1998 |
A window of opportunity may open up this
week for Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) when it unveils the
new K6-2 processor, although analysts caution that
aggressive pricing by Intel could quickly shut it again. Increasingly found in sub-$1,000 PCs from top-tier vendors such as Compaq and IBM, AMD's processor line could take another step forward with the K6-2. Incorporating the new 3D-Now instruction set, the chip is expected to be a staple for the next round of high-performance, low-cost PCs. |
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May 26, 1998 | ||
Latest x86 bid gives Rise to integration issueBy Anthony Cataldo May 26, 1998 |
Startup Rise Technology is about to
throw its hat into the ring of Intel X86 processor
competitors with a Socket 7 device geared toward low-end
PCs and notebook computers. The new entrant comes at a
time when processor, graphics and core-logic companies
are partnering to deliver integrated parts to power
low-end systems whose price points are continuing to
fall. The move toward sub-$700 PCs is forcing the industry to look for as many ways as possible to cut costs. "By the end of this year, you will see at least one of the major U.S. OEMs offering a sub-$600 PC," said Samuel Liu, president of Taiwanese chip-set maker Silicon Integrated Systems Corp. "Moving graphics functions onto the core logic is one way to reach that price point." |
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Intel
and IBM square up over very odd and strange battle
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IBM today made an unprecedented attack
against its partner Intel, blaming it for confusing its
corporate customers. The director of IBM's personal systems group in the UK and Ireland said that confusion in the market over PC specifications was responsible for lower demand from major corporations, although he stressed it was his personal view. Ian Boulton, the newly appointed head of the PC business, said: "People are saying they don't know what to do in the corporate market place." He said while IBM was gaining customers, the value of their orders was down. |
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Intel
licenses architecture. Big deal.
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Intel said it had no comment to make
about a story on the US wires that it had licensed its P6
technology to an unnamed third party. But a representative said that he was under the impression that companies that wanted to license the architecture could so anyway. The report quoted Paul Otellini, general manager of Intel's architecture unit as saying the company had already licensed the technology and the company will introduce chip sets soon. |
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Intel
leaves Katmai MMX2 stuff hanging around
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A US software expert claims he has
discovered the truth behind Intel's additional MMX2
instructions in its forthcoming Katmai processor. In
addition, he has posted information he said he found on
an FTP site, which could compromise Intel's internal
security. Clive Turvey, who has posted the information at his web site at http://www.tbcnet.com/~clive/vcomwinp.html#KNI said he came across the instructions accidentally on Intel's own public FTP site. |
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IBM
Micro-Cyrix agreement takes further twist
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A row is set to erupt between
NatSemi-Cyrix and IBM after Big Blue said it would offer
the same processors to the market but at a lower price.
That could precipitate the end of the agreement between
both companies, as National Semiconductor prepares to
fabricate all parts itself. One source said it was on the
verge of announcing its own Slot One solution to attack
Intel on its own ground. A few days ago, it emerged that IBM Microelectronics had difficulty in setting up its distribution programme in Europe. IBM Microelectronics is set to inflame the situation further by asserting that its products have better packaging, testing and distribution than the same chips from Cyrix. The company today announced the release of two chips in its 6x86MX range. These processors are produced as part of a joint agreement with National Semiconductor-Cyrix. |
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Cheaper, faster notebooks on wayBy Michael Kanellos May 22, 1998 |
Next year will likely be a watershed for
the pricing and performance of notebook computers. Low-cost yet high-performance versions of Intels Celeron processor will begin to permeate the portable world in the first half of next year, say sources, joining a low-end notebook market being pioneered by Cyrix and Advanced Micro Devices. |
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Intel Clones Set New CourseBy Mark Hachman May 25, 1998 |
Once thought of as clone makers,
manufacturers of x86 microprocessors are beginning to
carve out unique road maps. The relationship between IBM Microelectronics and National Semiconductor's Cyrix subsidiary is quietly evolving beyond simply sharing processor wafers. And Integrated Device Technology's Centaur Technology subsidiary described its plans to integrate core-logic functions into its microprocessors at last week's PC Tech Forum. |
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Rude
Awakening
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In the United States nobody so far took
notice of reports from far-off Europe regarding forged
Intel processors. But by means of the c't test program
'ctP2info' more and more users and dealers in Intel's
native country now discover that they also fell a victim
to the remarking fraud. Until quite recently forged Pentium processors in the United States have simply been a typical case of 'SEP' (Somebody Else's Problem). This is aggravated by the fact that for many Americans the importance of news diminishes corresponding to the distance squared. This perhaps is the only possible explanation for the lack of interest so far in the American trade press concerning this subject. |
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Big Blue
gets in more trouble with NatSemi
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Senior executives at IBM
Microelectronics have said that the foil they showed in
the UK last Monday and exclusively revealed here, will be
based on the design of the Cyrix Slot One solution. But that disclosure is set to mean further friction between the two companies, as National Semiconductor-Cyrix looks set to ditch IBM as its own fabs come onstream. |