GLG News by Semiconductor Experts in GLG Member Programs (California)

Both the server and PC markets seem to have held up very well during the past months, and barring a catastrophic collapse of the economy, likely will continue to do well.  Credit must go to the innovations in both technology and business processes achieved primarily by HP, Dell and Intel.

The next evolution of Xen software puts further pressure on VMWare’s market share and margins.  This is a clear indication that VMWare’s business model will require a major overhaul sometime in the next year or two.  Microsoft will be less impacted since they have less today. 

Intel’s next-gen Nehalem processor ups the performance bar, making it increasingly difficult for AMD.  Server manufacturers and software vendors will also be impacted, positively or negatively, by this generation of processors, which will also provide further impetus to cloud computing.

Rumors abound that Cisco might purchase EMC, but that seems very unlikely given the cost involved and the lack of apparent synergy.  Cisco could, however, purchase VMWare.  Cisco has made virtualization a key strategic focus, and adding VMWare would instantly catapult them to the top of the...

Microsoft’s acquisition of DATAllegro should put to rest any skepticism on whether Microsoft is serious about the data warehouse and Business Intelligence (BI) market.  They have been progressively moving more into BI and data warehouses for several years, but have focused on the low-end BI user. ...

HP maintains worldwide leadership, but Dell is staging a comeback.  HP may be able to leverage their wide array of products for an advantage.  The second-tier vendors will continue to do well in places but seem to have little chance of unseating either Dell or HP.  Apple is a dark horse...

At a market cap of $7-8B and $2+B in the bank, along with healthy free cash flow, Sun is starting to look ripe for an acquisition.  It’s becoming increasingly clear that Sun’s current business model isn’t working, but their IP, customer base, brand recognition and employee base makes them attr...

VMWare is doing great, so how could they be in trouble?  By having both Microsoft and open source invade their market.  Their easy growth is in the past, and now the question becomes whether they can thrive in a highly competitive environment.

Bertrand Cambou, CEO of Spansion, has an opinion on Numonyx' push into phase-change memories: "Phase-change memory is pure marketing fluff." Although Cambou is correct that existing Numonyx phase change memories are not ready for prime time, the situation will be quite different below 32nm, which...

According to the media and several prominent individuals, SaaS is the future of the software business.  The “old-fashioned” licensed software model is doomed.  Yet the most profitable and biggest software companies have only a limited presence in SaaS.  Does this mean they are out of...