anEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH)

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SMH Chart

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AMAT Chart

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PMCS chart

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UPDATE: Advanced Micro Devices Shrs Fall As Two Execs Depart

(Updated throughout to include the departure of a second
executive, Victor Peng.) By Rebecca Townsend Of DOW
JONES NEWSWIRES NEW YORK (Dow Jones)-- Advanced Micro
Devices Inc . (AMD) shares fell 4.1% Friday as two more
executives resigned, both of whom came from the company's
purchase of ATI Technologies Inc. Victor Peng and Vijay
Sharma, a pair of executives within AMD's graphics chip
department, announced their departures Friday but declined to
reveal their future plans. The two departures were not related
and came as AMD announced several promotions within the graphics
chip division. Peng was a corporate vice president, while
Sharma was a director of product marketing. The resignations
follow the departures of other AMD executives within the past
eight months. Former executive vice president Dave Orton left in
July, followed by Henri Richard, who resigned as executive vice
president and chief sales and marketing officer in August, and
then Rick Hegberg, who announced in September his plans to leave
as senior vice president of worldwide sales. Both Peng and
Sharma came to AMD as part of the company's $5.4 billion purchase
of ATI, a Canadian company best known for chips used to manage
graphics. The 2006 deal was controversial on Wall Street, in
part because of the debt AMD needed to complete it.
Acquisition-related charges from the deal have contributed to a
string of five straight quarterly losses, including a $1.8
billion loss in the fourth quarter. AMD shares, which traded
as low as $5.76 Friday, ended the regular session at $5.91, its
lowest close since Jan. 9. Over the past 52 weeks, the stock has
traded between $5.31 and $16.19. -By Rebecca Townsend, Dow
Jones Newswires; 201-938-5174, [e-mail]
(George Stahl contributed to this report.) (END) Dow Jones
Newswires 03-28-08 1754ET Copyright (c) 2008 Dow Jones &
Company,
Inc.

5:55 pm March 28, 2008, Dow Jones

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Micron Technology To Report
Results Micron Technology Inc . (MU) reports fiscal
second-quarter financial results after the bell Wednesday. The
memory-chip maker faces Wall Street from the depths of a cycle of
chip oversupply and plunging prices. Micron is suffering from
weakness in all three of its markets: dynamic random access
memory, or DRAM, chips used in personal computers; NAND flash
chips used in portable music players, cellphones and other
electronic devices; and CMOS image sensors, used in phones and
cameras. The triple trouble pushed Standard & Poor's earlier this
month to warn that it may downgrade Micron's debt ratings. And
the pain in NAND caused Micron's partner, Intel Corp. (INTC), to
issue a damaging profit warning in early March. To add insult
to injury, Micron last week lost a battle in its brewing legal
war with Rambus Inc . (RMBS), which says Micron and other DRAM
makers violated its patents and owe it royalties. Micro vowed to
appeal, but the news raised the specter of additional costs for a
product with slimming margins.

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USD filled that small gap yesterday

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must be going to fill that gap

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INTC chart

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AMAT Chart

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the SOX Chart

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MRVL chart

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SMH chart

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Applied Materials CIO Sells Shares
Monday March 24, 12:14 pm ET
Applied Materials Chief Information Officer Ron Kifer Sells 19,358 Shares of Common Stock


NEW YORK (AP) -- The group vice president and chief information officer of Applied Materials Inc. sold 19,358 shares of common stock, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
In a Form 4 filed with the SEC Thursday, Ron Kifer reported selling the shares on Wednesday for $21.17 apiece.

Insiders file Form 4s with the SEC to report transactions in their companies' shares. Open market purchases and sales must be reported within two business days of the transaction.

Applied Materials, a supplier of computer chip-making equipment, is based in Santa Clara, Calif.

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Lehman Upgrades Some Chip Makers
Monday March 24, 2:09 pm ET
Lehman Analyst Upgrades 4 Analog Chip Makers to 'Overweight' on Risk-And-Reward Balance


NEW YORK (AP) -- A Lehman Brothers analyst upgraded four analog chip makers Monday, citing the potential for order growth and consolidation, among other factors.
Analyst Romit Shah moved his rating on Microsemi Corp., Intersil Corp., Fairchild Semiconductor International Inc. and Analog Devices Inc. to "Overweight" from "Equal weight."

"We believe that analog has one of the most attractive risk/reward profiles in technology and expect our universe to outperform for the balance of 2008," Shah said in a note to clients.

The analog chip stocks covered by Shah have underperformed the S&P 500 by about 22 percent over the last six months, and moving forward should trade at a premium "to the prior recession" based on higher gross margins, earnings and free cash flow, he said.

"Valuation by itself does not drive stocks but we think it is a good precondition," he said. Still, a catalyst -- potentially better earnings -- will be needed to fuel growth, he said.

Yet the absence of high valuations and prospects for slow growth set the state for increased mergers and acquisitions, Shah said.

Also Monday, Shah upgraded PMC-Sierra Inc., which makes communications chips, to "Overweight" from "Equal weight" with a $7 price target. The target implies he expects the stock to rise about 30 percent over Thursday's $5.40 close

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TSM chart

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SMH Chart

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AMAT getting close to resistance
and has developed a gap problem

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shorter tiome frame chart of the SMH

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Sector Snap: Semiconductors Up
Tuesday March 11, 2:10 pm ET
Chip Stocks Up As Analyst Says Demand for Chips Is Stable


NEW YORK (AP) -- Chip stocks rose higher than the wider technology market Tuesday, after an analyst said demand for microchips is stable and that sales for Taiwan chip makers are soaring.
The chip sector, as measured by the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, rose 5.84 points or 1.7 percent to 345.57 in midday trading, while the Nasdaq Composite Index rose 1.36 percent.

Wachovia Capital Markets analyst David Wong said in a note to investors that February sales grew 29 percent year over year for Taiwanese microchip foundries, which make chips for many of the world's largest semiconductor companies.

If two of the world's largest chip makers, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. and United Microelectronics Corp., achieve their quarterly guidance, March microchip foundry sales will be up 30 percent, Wong said.

United Microelectronics shares rose 10 cents or 3.2 percent to $3.16 in afternoon trading. They have traded between $2.75 and $4.48 in the last 12 months.

Taiwan Semiconductor shares rose 28 cents or 2.8 percent to $10.22. They have traded between $7.56 and $11.81 in the last 12 months.

Wong said foundry sales, coupled with earnings reports and estimates, imply there is stable demand for microchips.

Elsewhere in the sector, Emcore Corp. surged after Jefferies & Co. analyst John Lau said the company's relationship with solar company Green and Gold Energy has a lot of potential.

Emcore shares rose 60 cents or 6.6 percent to $9.70 in afternoon trading. They have traded between $4.32 and $15.90 in the last 12 months.

While stocks rose in nearly all segments of the chip industry, analog chip maker Texas Instruments Inc., fell after it reduced its first-quarter outlook.

Piper Jaffray analyst Amit Kapur downgraded the shares to "Neutral" from "Buy" and cut his price target to $30 from $36.

Texas Instruments shares fell $1.19 or 4 percent to $28.46 in afternoon trading. They earlier hit a year low of $27.72 after trading in the last year between $28 and $39.63.

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Applied Materials Announces Cash Dividend
Tuesday March 11, 1:55 pm ET


SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Applied Materials, Inc. today announced that its Board of Directors has approved a quarterly cash dividend of $0.06 per share payable on the company’s common stock. The dividend is payable on June 5, 2008 to stockholders of record as of May 15, 2008.

Applied Materials, Inc. (Nasdaq:AMAT - News) is the global leader in Nanomanufacturing Technology™ solutions with a broad portfolio of innovative equipment, services and software products for the fabrication of semiconductor chips, flat panel displays, solar photovoltaic cells, flexible electronics and energy efficient glass. At Applied Materials, we apply Nanomanufacturing Technology to improve the way people live. Learn more at www.appliedmaterials.com.





Contact:
Applied Materials, Inc.
David Miller, 408-563-9582 (Editorial/Media)
Randy Bane, 408-986-7916 (Financial Community)

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Chip maker Texas Instruments (nyse: TXN - news - people ) reduced its first-quarter outlook. The company said a major, unnamed customer has slashed its orders this year. The news sent tech and telecom stocks down in Europe

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INTC Chart

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Amat

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60 MInute chart

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Semiconductor Demand Down, Inventory Up
Texas Instruments' and Gartner's latest numbers show that chipmaker inventory has crept into the "caution zone"
by Arik Hesseldahl

Technology
Semiconductor Demand Down, Inventory Up
Meebo May Be This Year's Twitter
Microsoft 'Moving On' After HD DVD Breakup
An Appealing Play in Pain Management
Mini-Laptops: The Next Big Thing?
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linkedin connections Evidence that the U.S. economic slump is taking a toll on chipmakers came on Mar. 10 with a forecast of a sales-and-profit shortfall at Texas Instruments and news of a jump in stockpiles of unsold semiconductors.

Texas Instruments (TXN) said its first-quarter revenue and earnings won't be as high as previously expected, citing disappointing wireless demand. That followed a Gartner Group (IT) report showing that semiconductor inventories rose to their highest level in two years in the last three months of 2007. "We started hearing rumors of a recession and indicators of a weak fourth quarter during the middle of 2007," says Gartner analyst Gerald Van Horn. In the second half of last year, "we saw [inventories] rise on exuberant hopes for a strong holiday season. But the strong fourth quarter didn't materialize."

As a result, Gartner's inventory index, which measures inventory throughout the chip industry's supply chain, rose to 1.16 in the fourth quarter. According to the researcher, 0.95 indicates a slight shortage amid heavy demand, while 1.10 suggests slackening demand with a slight excess inventory. A higher reading falls into what Gartner calls the "caution zone," where chipmakers should seriously consider cutting their inventory.

More Than a Holiday Hangover
While the index is nowhere near the early 2001 peak of 1.7, it still comes as bad news to an industry dealing with a slump that's crimping demand for electronics of many stripes as well for the chips and other components that run them. On Mar. 3, Intel (INTC) trimmed its margin forecast, citing falling prices for a type of memory known as NAND flash (BusinessWeek.com, 3/5/08) that's widely used in consumer electronics. Analysts speculated that Intel, the world's No. 1 maker of chips, also is suffering from an inventory buildup.

Mounting inventory levels indicate that manufacturers of finished electronics are cutting back on chip orders, leaving chipmakers little choice but to cut prices or write down the value of inventory. It's not uncommon for chip inventories to grow during the first quarter of the calendar year. Electronics manufacturers, especially those that make consumer products and PCs, often order more chips than they need ahead of the busy holiday season. That usually leaves a sizable batch of unused chips in the pipeline. But Van Horn says the current inventory glut is larger than the seasonal norm.

Shares of Texas Instruments slipped 1.20, to 28.45, in extended trading after the announcement. The stock had closed at 29.65. Texas Instruments cited reduced orders from a customer it wouldn't identify, fueling speculation that it might be Nokia (NOK), the world's biggest maker of mobile phones. "The takeaway here is that the wireless market is tough for component suppliers," says Robert Burleson, an analyst at Canaccord Adams.

More Signs of Stress
The inventory buildup may be widespread, says Gartner's Van Horn. Stockpiles are on the rise at foundries, which handle manufacturing for other chipmakers. "Their inventory is considered work in progress," Van Horn says. "We saw a sizable increase there. The fact is, these chips simply haven't been delivered."

Other analysts have noticed the slowdown at foundries, too. Mehdi Hosseini, an analyst at FBR Capital Markets, said in a research note issued on Mar. 10 that Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) has started to see a drop in its shipments but the level hasn't fallen enough to prevent a net increase in its inventory. This trend, coupled with weaker sales by National Semiconductor (NSM), constitute "warning signs that orders at Taiwan Semi will mostly be cut sooner rather than later."

How long will it take for the inventory picture to brighten? Van Horn says the worst already may be over. But even he doesn't expect Gartner's closely watched index to fall out of the caution zone until the second half of the year.

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Texas Instruments Cuts Outlook
Monday March 10, 7:30 pm ET
By David Koenig, AP Business Writer
Texas Instruments Lowers 1st-Quarter Sales, Profit Outlook


DALLAS (AP) -- Texas Instruments Inc., which makes chips used in about half the world's cell phones, lowered its range of expected profits and sales in the first quarter, citing a key customer's decision to cut orders.
ADVERTISEMENT


Company officials on Monday declined to identify the customer, other than to indicate it is a maker of wireless phones.

Two major wireless customers of Texas Instruments -- Nokia Corp. and Sony Ericsson -- both announced last year they would begin ordering some chips from other semiconductor companies instead of relying solely on the Dallas-based company.

Texas Instruments said it expected to earn between 41 cents and 45 cents per share in the quarter ending March 31, 3 cents lower than the midpoint of a January forecast.

Analysts expected 46 cents per share, according to a survey by Thomson Financial.

Texas Instruments also said sales would total between $3.21 billion and $3.35 billion, or about $130 million below the midpoint of the January estimate. Analysts had forecast $3.4 billion.

Back in January, the company said it would earn 43 cents to 49 cents per share on sales of $3.27 billion to $3.55 billion in the first quarter.

Texas Instruments shares had risen 35 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $29.65 before the first-quarter update was released after hours.

The shares fell $1.15, or 3.9 percent, to $28.50 in after-hours trading. That's close to the low point in the 52-week range of $28 to $39.63.

If the new forecast is accurate, Texas Instruments' revenue will fall 6 to 10 percent compared to the fourth quarter but rise 1 to 5 percent compared to the first quarter a year ago. Earnings would also decline from the fourth quarter but remain above the year-ago profit of 35 cents per share.

Vice President Ron Slaymaker said the lowered forecast was due to weaker demand from makers of high-end wireless phones, "mostly a particular customer" whose decision was made in the past week or so.

Slaymaker insisted his company is not losing sales to rival chip suppliers but is suffering slowing in demand for advanced wireless phones.

He declined to say whether Texas Instruments expects the slowdown to last beyond March but said the company would provide details next month.

Dallas-based Texas Instruments suffered setbacks last year when Nokia, its largest customer, and Sony Ericsson decided to seek other chip suppliers.

Texas Instruments sells chips for both low-end mobile phones used in emerging markets such as China and India and advanced, feature-laden models more common in developed countries. The latter are more profitable, although emerging markets offer the potential for heavy sales volumes and trade-up consumers in coming years.

Analysts said Nokia was probably the only customer large enough to cause such a quick downward revision in TI's revenue forecast.

Cody Acree, an analyst for Stifel Nicolaus & Co., said Nokia "sees the exact same economic uncertainty that we all do. This could definitely be a leading indicator of what's to come if you want to view it in a more pessimistic light."

Acree said, however, he took hope in Texas Instruments saying that sales in the rest of its wireless division and its big business in analog chips were still running at expected levels.

J. Steven Smigie, an analyst with Raymond James & Associates, estimated that Texas Instruments could have about $22 worth of components in advanced 3G or third-generation phones, making a slowdown in the higher end of the market more damaging.

"I wouldn't call it catastrophic, but it's a little disappointing that it's 3G handsets and not your lower-end phones," he said. "Generally your higher-end customers hold up a little better in tough times."

The company also said Monday that its educational unit, which makes the calculators for which the company was once best known, would generate first-quarter sales between $70 million and $90 million, unchanged from an earlier forecast.

Texas Instruments also makes chips for digital cameras, televisions and other electronics.

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some Gaps after they reported earnings

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SMH Chart

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SMH Chart

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MU Chart

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BRCM Chart

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AMAT Chart some nice volume this morning

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AMD Chart

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MU chart

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BRCM chart

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INTC Chart

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AMD Chart

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AMAT 15 minute Chart

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was holding ny breath @ 28 almost turn blue all over

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Needs to turn around here

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4-Mar-2008

Regulation FD Disclosure



Item 7.01 Regulation FD Disclosure
Applied Materials, Inc. ("Applied") announces that it has entered into sales agreements with a privately-held corporation based outside the United States ("Buyer"), under which Applied will supply equipment and installation/warranty services for multiple solar factories to be constructed by Buyer. The factories, which will feature Applied SunFab™ thin film tandem junction production equipment, collectively are expected to produce an annual output of solar photovoltaic modules capable of generating electricity on a gigawatt scale. The aggregate purchase price for the equipment and related services (exclusive of post-warranty services) to be provided by Applied under the agreements is approximately US$1.9 billion.

The information in this Item 7.01 is furnished and shall not be deemed "filed" for the purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or otherwise subject to liabilities under that section, and shall not be deemed to be incorporated by reference into the filings of Applied under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, regardless of any general incorporation language in such filings.

Safe Harbor Statement

This report contains forward-looking statements, including those relating to expected performance under and benefits of the agreements. These statements are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements, including, without limitation: demand for solar products, which is subject to many factors, including global economic and market conditions, government policies and incentives relating to renewable energy, technological innovations, the cost of competing sources of energy, and evolving industry standards; Buyer's ability to timely (i) secure financing for this new business,
(ii) obtain required regulatory approvals, (iii) establish operations and infrastructure to support a project of this scale, (iv) complete construction of factories meeting specified requirements, and (v) meet security, payment and other obligations under the agreements; Applied's ability to (i) successfully develop, deliver and support its broad range of products, (ii) effectively manage the resources, logistics, production capability and supply chain required for this scale of project, (iii) meet factory performance specifications and other obligations under the agreements, and (iv) recruit and retain key employees; and other risks described in Applied's SEC filings, including its most recent Form 10-Q. All forward-looking statements are based on management's estimates, projections and assumptions as of the date of this report, and Applied undertakes no obligation to update any such statements.

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Nice pop PM in AMAT

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INTC Chart

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short term Chart



would be nice to get a little confirmation that we have a possible short term bottom in this POS

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Broadcom Acquires Sunext Design, Inc. for Optical Drive Technologies to Enable Single-Chip High Definition Blu-ray Disc(R) Players and Recorders
Monday March 3, 8:00 am ET
Purchase Accelerates Time to Integration of Front-End and Back-End Blu-ray Disc Capabilities into Next Generation Broadcom(R) Consumer Electronics Products


IRVINE, Calif. and SUNNYVALE, Calif., March 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Broadcom Corporation (Nasdaq: BRCM - News), a global leader in semiconductors for wired and wireless communications, today announced that it has acquired Sunext Design, Inc. ("Sunext Design"), a wholly-owned U.S. subsidiary of Sunext Technology Company Limited ("Sunext Technology"), and has licensed certain optical disk reader and writer technology from Sunext Technology. Sunext Technology is a privately-held fabless semiconductor company that specializes in optical storage technologies.

High definition optical disc players are emerging as a popular platform for in-home entertainment worldwide by combining the benefits of a high definition viewing experience with the convenience and familiarity of DVD media. Sunext single-chip front-end technology is a strong complement to the industry-leading Broadcom® system-on-a-chip (SoC) back-end Blu-ray Disc® platform, and key to an integration roadmap that will drive the cost of these devices down to levels that enable widespread consumer adoption of high definition optical disc players and recorders.

With the increasing adoption of full high definition 1080p digital televisions, and with the consumer electronics and media industries now united behind the Blu-ray Disc high definition DVD standard, demand for these high definition players and recorders is expected to increase significantly. As the market grows, manufacturers will strive to reduce prices by adopting optimized SoC solutions that integrate front-end and back-end functions. Broadcom, a leader in integrating advanced functionality, is responding to this trend by acquiring rights to the most highly integrated optical disc front-end technology available. The addition of Sunext's leading technology, along with the experienced engineering team from Sunext Design that can continue to enhance those technologies, will enable Broadcom to derive significant time to market advantages in the development of these highly integrated solutions.

"To further the widespread adoption of high definition Blu-ray Disc media players, it is imperative to have cost-effective, complete silicon solutions, and the acquisition by Broadcom of Sunext Design and license of its associated technology puts Broadcom firmly ahead in the race to offer a complete Blu-ray solution," said Michelle Abraham, Principal Analyst at In-Stat. "The merging of these technologies will help drive down the costs of next-generation Blu-ray Disc players and enable OEMs to deliver products that meet the price points required for mass adoption by consumers."

"The technology that will win the market share battle for Blu-ray Disc players and recorders will be the one that provides the highest quality audio and video processing while integrating the most advanced front-end and back- end functions into a single low cost device," said Dan Marotta, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Broadcom's Broadband Communications Group. "Sunext's technology and strong engineering team will enable Broadcom to

integrate optical reader/writer capability into our industry leading Blu-ray Disc silicon solutions."

"Broadcom's strong position in the Blu-ray Disc player and other home digital multimedia market segments makes it an ideal partner for Sunext Technology, making our optical technologies available to an existing customer base that is demanding integrated, high performance yet low cost solutions," said Dr. Phil Mak, President of Sunext Technology. "Armed with our robust solution, Broadcom will help drive the next evolution of these devices to the digital home while Sunext continues to deliver products to our customers and core markets."

Sunext Design, Inc. is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, with a highly experienced design team.

In connection with the transaction, which closed on Friday, February 29th, 2008, Broadcom will pay up to $48 million in cash in exchange for all of the outstanding shares of Sunext Design's capital stock and for the license rights granted by Sunext Technology. A portion of the consideration payable to the stockholders of Sunext Design will be placed into escrow pursuant to the terms of the acquisition agreement, and a substantial portion of the consideration payable to Sunext Technology for the license rights is subject to the achievement of certain deliverables post-closing. The boards of directors of both companies have approved the transaction. Broadcom may record a one-time charge for purchased in-process research and development expenses related to the acquisition in its first quarter. The amount of that charge, if any, has not yet been determined.

About Sunext Technology Company Limited

Sunext Technology Company Limited, with headquarters in Hsinchu, Taiwan, is privately held and a leading supplier of semiconductor products for Optical Disc Drive (ODD) applications. Sunext was formed in 2003 to capitalize on global demand for ODD silicon and operates design centers in Hsinchu, Taiwan; Taipei, Taiwan; Sunnyvale, USA; Eindhoven, The Netherlands and Shanghai, PRC. For further information visit the Sunext website at: www.sunext.com

About Broadcom's Broadband Communications Group

Broadcom offers manufacturers a range of broadband communications and consumer electronics SoCs that enable voice, video and data services over residential wired and wireless networks. These highly integrated silicon solutions continue to enable the most advanced system solutions on the market, which include digital cable, satellite and IP set-top boxes and media servers, broadband modems and residential gateways, high definition and digital televisions, Blu-ray Disc players, DVD recorders and personal video recorders.

About Broadcom

Broadcom Corporation is a major technology innovator and global leader in semiconductors for wired and wireless communications. Broadcom products enable the delivery of voice, video, data and multimedia to and throughout the home, the office and the mobile environment. We provide the industry's broadest portfolio of state-of-the-art system-on-a-chip and software solutions to manufacturers of computing and networking equipment, digital entertainment and broadband access products, and mobile devices. These solutions support our core mission: Connecting everything®.

Broadcom is one of the world's largest fabless semiconductor companies, with 2007 revenue of $3.78 billion, and holds over 2,500 U.S. and 1,100 foreign patents, more than 7,400 additional pending patent applications, and one of the broadest intellectual property portfolios addressing both wired and wireless transmission of voice, video, data and multimedia.

Broadcom is headquartered in Irvine, Calif., and has offices and research facilities in North America, Asia and Europe. Broadcom may be contacted at +1.949.926.5000 or at www.broadcom.com.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995:

All statements included or incorporated by reference in this release, other than statements or characterizations of historical fact, are forward- looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations, estimates and projections about our industry and business, management's beliefs, and certain assumptions made by us, all of which are subject to change. Forward-looking statements can often be identified by words such as "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "predicts," "believes," "seeks," "estimates," "may," "will," "should," "would," "could," "potential," "continue," "ongoing," similar expressions, and variations or negatives of these words. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future results and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause our actual results to differ materially and adversely from those expressed in any forward-looking statement.

Important factors that may cause such a difference for Broadcom in connection with the acquisition of Sunext Design, Inc. include, but are not limited to, the risks inherent in acquisitions of technologies and businesses, including the timing and successful completion of technology and product development through volume production, integration issues, costs and unanticipated expenditures, changing relationships with customers, suppliers and strategic partners, potential contractual, intellectual property or employment issues, accounting treatment and charges, and the risk that anticipated benefits of the acquisition may not be realized; general economic and political conditions and specific conditions in the markets we address, including the volatility in the technology sector and semiconductor industry, trends in the broadband communications markets in various geographic regions, including seasonality in sales of consumer products into which our products are incorporated, and possible disruption in commercial activities related to terrorist activity or armed conflict in the United States and other locations; the rate at which our present and future customers and end-users adopt Broadcom's technologies and products in the markets for high definition optical disc player applications; delays in the adoption and acceptance of industry standards in those markets; the timing, rescheduling or cancellation of significant customer orders and our ability, as well as the ability of our customers, to manage inventory; the gain or loss of a key customer, design win or order; our ability to scale our operations in response to changes in demand for our existing products and services or demand for new products requested by our customers; our ability to specify, develop or acquire, complete, introduce, market and transition to volume production new products and technologies in a cost- effective and timely manner; intellectual property disputes and customer indemnification claims and other types of litigation risk; our ability to retain, recruit and hire key executives, technical personnel and other employees in the positions and numbers, with the experience and capabilities, and at the compensation levels needed to implement our business and product plans the quality of our products and any remediation costs; changes in our product or customer mix; the volume of our product sales and pricing concessions on volume sales; the effectiveness of our expense and product cost control and reduction efforts; our ability to timely and accurately predict market requirements and evolving industry standards and to identify opportunities in new markets; problems or delays that we may face in shifting our products to smaller geometry process technologies and in achieving higher levels of design integration;; the risks and uncertainties associated with our international operations; competitive pressures and other factors such as the qualification, availability and pricing of competing products and technologies and the resulting effects on sales and pricing of our products; the timing of customer-industry qualification and certification of our products and the risks of non- qualification or non-certification; the availability and pricing of third party semiconductor foundry, assembly and test capacity and raw materials; fluctuations in the manufacturing yields of our third party semiconductor foundries and other problems or delays in the fabrication, assembly, testing or delivery of our products; the risks of producing products with new suppliers and at new fabrication and assembly facilities; the effects of natural disasters, public health emergencies, international conflicts and other events beyond our control; the level of orders received that can be shipped in a fiscal quarter; and other factors.

Our Annual Report on Form 10-K, recent Current Reports on Form 8-K, and other Securities and Exchange Commission filings discuss the foregoing risks as well as other important risk factors that could contribute to such differences or otherwise affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. The forward-looking statements in this release speak only as of this date. We undertake no obligation to revise or update publicly any forward-looking statement for any reason.

Broadcom®, the pulse logo, Connecting everything® and the Connecting everything logo are among the trademarks of Broadcom Corporation in the United States, EU and certain other countries. Blu-ray Disc® is a trademark of Sony Corporation. Any other trademarks or trade names mentioned are the property of their respective owners.


Broadcom Business Press Contact
Laura Brandlin
Senior Director, Marketing Communications
949-926-5108
[e-mail]

Broadcom Investor Relations Contact
T. Peter Andrew
Vice President, Corporate Communications
949-926-5663
[e-mail]

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SIA: Global Chip Sales Flat in January
Monday March 3, 9:03 am ET
Global Chip Sales Flat in January, Americas Sales Declined, Semiconductor Group Says


SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) -- Global semiconductor sales were essentially flat in January, while Americas sales fell, the Semiconductor Industry Association said Monday.
SIA said worldwide sales totaled $21.49 billion in January, up 0.03 percent from the same period in 2007. Sales in the Americas fell 6.9 percent to $3.45 billion from $3.71 billion.

SIA said worldwide sales also fell 3.6 percent from December's $22.28 billion in sales. The association attributed the sequential drop to traditional seasonal industry patterns.

Americas sales dropped 5.6 percent sequentially.

SIA said almost all product lines and segments of the market experienced slightly lower sales in January, but shipments of DRAM chips -- which are used in personal computers -- and NAND flash chips -- which are used in devices like iPods -- grew slightly.

Average selling prices declined as a competitive environment put pressures on prices for the products, SIA said.

SIA also said that PC and cell phone handset shipments met expectations for the month, and analysts expect unit growth of about 12 percent for PCs and 12 percent to 15 percent for handsets this year. The two device categories make up about 60 percent of global chip sales.

"The U.S. economy has entered a period of slower growth that may impact consumer purchases of electronic products," SIA president George Scalise said. "However the emergence and growth of large consumer markets outside the U.S. has created new opportunities for chipmakers."

Semiconductor sales rose 8.1 percent year-over-year excluding memory products, the association said.

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Microsoft Cuts Price for Boxed Vista
Friday February 29, 9:11 am ET
By Jessica Mintz, AP Technology Writer
Microsoft Says It Will Cut the Price of Some Versions of Windows Vista


http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080229/microsoft_vista_price_cut.html?.v=7

lol IMO they could not give me VISA lol

[rayrohn]

ok this is a post lol

[Stock]

.

[TREND1]

***** I have a 2B BOTTOM on SMH ($SOX) weekly charts***
at Friday's close.
Last time a 2B Bottom happened was July 2006
as shown on chart
.
And a look at USD = 2X SMH compared to SMH or PSI
.
Started a new board on IHUB to follow USD
You may want to take a look?

http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/board.asp?board_id=11395