According to the latest report from IHS, Qualcomm has defied industry slump with a double-digit increase in sales, making it the world’s third-largest chip maker this year. The firm is set to end 2012 with a 27.2 per cent growth in semiconductor revenue, indicating the highest rate of growth of any top 20 semiconductor supplier, added the market research firm.The nearly 30 per cent increase in revenue will cause Qualcomm’s share of the market to climb by a full percentage point to 4.3 per cent. More significantly, it will allow Qualcomm to rise three positions and take third place in the global semiconductor business—the first time it has reached such an elevated rank.
“This year has been terrible for most semiconductor application markets—with the sole exception of the wireless segment, which is expected to generate robust revenue growth this year,” said Dale Ford, senior director at IHS. “Consumers are continuing to buy more smartphones and media tablets, even as sales of other once-hot products like PCs and flat-panel TVs decelerate or decline. With its chips at the heart of countless cell phones, including Apple Inc.’s marquee iPhone 5, Qualcomm has discovered an oasis of growth in the desert that is the semiconductor market in 2012.”
The company’s rise in the rankings is part of long-term trend that reflects the growing importance of the wireless market in the electronics supply chain. It recently announced that it will expand its relationship with Sharp to jointly commercialise high performance, lower power displays for mobile devices like smartphones and tablets.
