Friday, January 12, 2007

More on ProMOS Image Sensors Venture

Digitimes: With regard to speculation that ProMOS Technologies may work with Cypress Semiconductor for CMOS image sensor (CIS) production, ML Chen, chairman of ProMOS, said he would not deny the speculation, but further details will not be announced until after more discussions.

According to ProMOS, it plans to start the new business with US$10 million in capital, and ProMOS will hold 100% of the new entity. Nevertheless, the maker is not ruling out introducing other strategic partners while ProMOS will remain the major shareholder of the company, Chen said.

ProMOS announced on January 11 that its Fab 2 (a 12-inch fab) will start producing CIS. Chen said the fab will be the first choice of the new design company for CIS production and the fab will also compete for orders from other companies. The fab will use 0.11-micron technology, more advanced than the 0.18-micron now used for CIS production.

The fab can produce CIS chips of three megapixel and will focus on high-end CIS, while its entry-level CIS will be taken care by an 8-inch fab in China, the company said.

Although ProMOS will remain focused on DRAM, the maker still needs another revenue driver and CIS is an appropriate choice, Chen said, adding that this is why ProMOS has chosen to ally with a major IDM in the US.

Besides making CIS, Fab 2 will continue manufacturing memory for consumer electronics, ProMOS said.

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