Sales figures for ATi’s Intel chipsets have fallen drastically

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For ATi, the 2006 financial year, which took its decision on August 31, ended on a low note. Although the balance sheet has not yet been officially drawn up, it is clear that the company has earned between 100 and 140 million dollars less than expected. Sales of handhelds, which account for about 20 percent of ATi’s income, declined sharply, but a spokesperson said that was solely due to the restructuring of the purchasing policy of one of the larger buyers. No adverse effects are expected in the longer term. Significantly more importantly, the production of chipsets for Intel processors was less profitable. The chipsets, which roughly represent 26 percent of the turnover, not only yielded much less, but ATi also expects that this decrease is structural.

“We thought the AMD acquisition would lead to a decline in Intel chipsets,” said CEO Dave Orton, “but we didn’t think it would happen so soon.” According to him, the company’s other products, such as video cards and handhelds, have been “very positively received” and there is no reason to doubt their viability. For the Intel chipsets, however, that story does not hold. As soon as news of the AMD takeover broke, speculation arose that Intel would make every effort to thwart the pair. For example, Intel would pressure motherboard makers not to produce boards based on the new RD600 chipset, and the successor to that chipset was even canceled entirely.

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