China-based companies show the largest fabless IC marketshare gain since 2010.

Research included in the March Update to the 2018 edition of IC Insights’ McClean Report shows that fabless IC suppliers accounted for 27% of the world’s IC sales in 2017—an increase from 18% ten years earlier in 2007.  As the name implies, fabless IC companies do not operate an IC fabrication facility of their own.Figure 1 shows the 2017 fabless company share of IC sales by company headquarters location.  At 53%, U.S. companies accounted for the greatest share of fabless IC sales last year, although this share was down from 69% in 2010 (due in part to the acquisition of U.S.-based Broadcom by Singapore-based Avago). Broadcom Limited currently describes itself as a “co-headquartered” company with its headquarters in San Jose, California and Singapore, but it is in the process of establishing its headquarters entirely in the U.S. Once this takes place, the U.S. share of the fabless companies IC sales will again be about 69%.

Figure 1

Greetings from Dresden, Germany! I’m attending DATE (Design, Automation & Test in Europe), a lively conference sponsored by the ESD Alliance covering a range of topics related to electronic system design.

A reminder that Thursday, April 5, is the date of the 2018 ESD Alliance-hosted CEO Outlook, a rare chance to hear from C-level executives and an opportunity to compare notes on trends and networking with other attendees. Attendees will be able to talk with panelists to learn their thoughts on the semiconductor design ecosystem before they head to the stage. Panelists are Arm’s Simon Segars, Dean Drako of IC Manage, Wally Rhines from Mentor, a Siemens Business, and Sonics’ Grant Pierce. Ed Sperling, editor-in-chief of Semiconductor Engineering, will serve as moderator. Each of the four panelists will present a brief opening statement about the future of the industry that will lead to a discussion about trends and opportunities. An interactive and moderated audience discussion will follow.