Updates to this story
Fab-free firm Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has decided to “redefine” its relationship with GlobalFoundries (GloFo) so that everyone completely understands how transparent the relationship is. The relationship is, as the world+dog knows, as clear as mud.
In a statement, AMD said it had “amended” – read change – its relationship with GloFo on pricing for wafers delivered this year for CPUs and for graphics processing units (GPUs) and for chipsets, too. That could spell a design lose for Taiwanese foundry giant TSMC, TechEye understands.
GloFo has pledged, said AMD, to provide it with a “fixed number” of 45 nanometre and 32 nanometre wafers every quarter during this year. AMD said, as if to warn GloFo – it wants “good die”.
AMD will gain a cool half a billion US greenbacks if GloFo squares up to the commitment, a mysterious statement. In signs of a rift between the two companies, AMD said it will only pay GloFo during 2012 if the megafoundry meets unnamed “specified conditions” related to 32 nanometre capacity beginning in 2012.
AMD will pay GloFo between $1.1 billion and $1.5 billion this year, and could pay nearly $2 billion next year.
AMD will make half a billion out of this rather odd SEC related transaction, although the deal is far from transparent.
GloFo made no comments at press time. AMD is a public company so will report to Wall Street tomorrow. GloFo is a private company.
Informed sources told TechEye that AMD gets better pricing at the 32 nanometre level based on yields, which are looking pretty good. It is a return to an old pricing model. GloFo will win business from TSMC on this basis on fabbing up the graphics stuff.
No one knows what is in the heart of an accountant. The gain for AMD is in "write offf" territory, another source at Sunnyvale said. ♣
Looking Like 45 nm & below are Do Overs, again & again. from 135 Nm & Barton core, just few Millions transistors to Today 1/5 scale to tomorrows ~13 nm or 10 x 10 improvement in scale, Wheres theBEEF. Are CompleXities Gone Before Bottom Scaling.
How Many Times, How Many. New DuBi Cos: Buy Protesters & level GloFou Field. Opps, meant Rent-A-Protester. Missiles To Launch.
vondrashek md
Intel can afford to bribe Dell 6-BILLION dollars, and recent litigation revealed that Intel had secret agreements with ALL of the major computer manufacturers.
Since 6-billion is already bigger than AMD's market cap, I guess it makes sense that AMD has to do all sorts of funny stuff to survive the onslaught.
Intel is monopolistic inside. Read the NY AG's Complaint against Intel. 60-pages of thrilling stuff - better than a mafia novel.
As for this agreement itself, GloFo may just has well have shouted "our 32nm yields suck!", for that is the only interpretation of AMD's desire to switch from buying wafers at cost+plus to "only good die".