Microelectronics

The access to MEMS microphone original design will be more and more important in the future and we can expect both strong R&D projects and also M&A to get access to MEMS design and manufacturing capabilities. This report offers a more in-depth discussion on this scope and key strategic evolution of the industry.

Although the prolonged severity of the recent economic slowdown, and depressed key-end use segments have elicited decline in value sales for System-On-a-Chip (SoC), the market is nevertheless expected to recover poise in the medium-to-long term period and register US$39.4 billion in sales by the year 2015. Primary factors fingered to drive growth in the market include, expansion of microcontroller based SoCs business, increase in demand for advanced SoC designs, recovery in key end-use markets post recession and technology innovations. Encouraging demand from developing nations, particularly Asia-Pacific also augur well for the market.

World MEMS Devices market is forecast to reach US$9.2 billion by the year 2015. Recovery in passenger car production coupled with depleting inventory buildup in the supply chain on wings of improving consumer demand, have revived MEMS shipments. Investments in new product development, innovation, and expansion of production capacity augur well for the future of the market. The automobile industry, which represents a major high volume end-user of MEMS technologies, was the worst affected by the recession with a punishing fall in vehicle sales pushing auto majors into the red. Although shielded to a degree by mandatory regulatory safety standards, especially in Europe and North America, automotive MEMS applications witnessed weakened business prospects as a result of the crushing effect of depressed automotive production.

The year 2009 was difficult for several MEMS manufacturers, but 2010 saw a major return to growth for the entire industry. Going into 2011, global sales of both Sensors and MEMs are projected to reach nearly $11.1 billion in global revenue and 9.6 billion unit shipments. Over the next five years both sales and shipments are expected to experience average annual growth of 12 percent. Meanwhile, average selling prices will grow just slightly, reaching $1.15 in 2011 and growing slightly to $1.18 by 2016.

Microcontrollers are one of the most versatile products in the semiconductor market. They are found in all five market segments and in several product families spanning from 8-bit products to 32-bit processors used in high end embedded applications. The microcontroller market is forecast to reach over $16 billion worldwide in 2011 and is predicted to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 9 percent over the next five years.

The DSP market has been thriving for some time now thanks to the mobile phone application market. Today, the demand for smart phones that requires a microprocessor for the applications, has significantly limited the growth opportunities for DSP used in this space. Suppliers have responded to this by offering ARM Processors with integrated DSP function. DSPs are used in many other application markets including wireless infrastructure, automotive navigation and imaging systems. This tracker provides demand statistics for DSPs. Sales of these products will reach close to $6 billion this year.

Asia-Pacific, Europe and the United States dominate the global market for microcontrollers with a consolidated share of more than 90%, as stated by the new market research report on microcontrollers. Asia-Pacific represents the fastest growing market for microcontrollers with a compounded annual growth rate of 5.2% over the analysis period. Rising consumer expenditure on household appliances and consumer electronics is contributing to the enhanced demand for 16-bit MCUs across Asian markets, particularly Southeast Asia. Future growth in demand for MCUs in the region is dependent on factors such as consumer awareness levels, government regulations, and initiatives undertaken by manufacturers.