Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD)

[HailMary]

From a purely CPU sales perspective, I think Intel is making enough money to pay for the CPU R&D, so in one respect, I already consider it profitable.

Thanks for the straightforward response. I wasn't trying to bait you. I see numbers and statements thrown around by people who don't know enough about the subject, and you seem closer to the subject, so I wanted your opinion. I find the above statement hard to believe though. 100000 Itaniums at $1000 profit each is only $100M. The research on IPF has to be in the billions by now, isn't it? Or is that another overblown number that gets tossed around?

Also - what would happen to Itanium if an x86 based solution was around that could challenge its strengths at less cost? It's possible AMD's next generation might pose this challenge even if Intel intentionally keeps their products out of that space.