Truths...from the rumor mill

Collected By Robert R. Collins

Week of May 6, 2001

Older News

Jury finds Rambus committed fraud

By Jack Robertson

May 9, 2001
EBN

The jury ordered Rambus to pay $3.5 million in punitive damages to Infineon Technologies AG, which Rambus had sued for alleged patent infringement.

The damage amount, however, will likely be reduced to as low as $350,000 due to a Virginia state law capping the level of punitive awards.

Jury awards Infineon $3.5M on fraud charges

By George Leopold

May 9, 2001
EE Times

A spokeswoman for the U.S. District Court in Richmond, Va., confirmed that the seven-member jury found Rambus (Los Altos, Calif.) guilty on fraud charges brought as counterclaims by Infineon. The claims followed rulings by Judge Robert Payne dismissing all Rambus patent-infringement claims against Munich, Germany-based Infineon, which operates manufacturing facilities in the Richmond area.

Court rules against Rambus

By Michael Kanellos

May 9, 2001
C/Net

A jury in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia ruled Wednesday that Rambus committed fraud against Infineon by failing to properly disclose patent information when required by an industry standards body. The jury awarded Infineon $3.5 million. But Judge Robert Payne is likely to reduce the award to $350,000 to conform with state law, according to reports from the trial. Infineon had sought $105 million.

AMD chip name to echo Pentium

By Michael Kanellos

May 9, 2001
C/Net

As part of its ongoing rivalry with Intel, AMD will call its new chip, coming out next week, the Athlon 4, according to sources. Presumably, the name change comes as a way to better market the chip against Intel's Pentium 4.

There is no Athlon 2 or 3. Since 1999, all of the chips in the family have been called Athlon.

Truths...from the rumor mill

Guilty! Rambus commited fraud

By Drew Cullen

May 10, 2001
The Register

The jury agreed with arguments presented by Infineon, the German chipmaker and Rambus nemesis, that Rambus had deliberately hidden its intention to file patents for SDRAM technology from JEDEC, an industry body charged with agreeing memory standards. Rambus then succeed in incorporating its technology into the supposedly open JEDEC standard, Infineon claimed.

Infineon win may axe Samsung's Rambus royalty

By Tony Smith

May 9, 2001
The Register

As a Rambus licensee, you'd expect Samsung to be rallying for its technology partner. However, as EBN has spotted, Samsung stands to have its royalty payments slashed if Rambus loses its patent infringement case against Infineon.

A clause in Samsung's license states: "If a court determines that the [Rambus] patents have not been infringed in any geographic area, Samsung royalties will not apply in that geographic area."

Rambus DDR coffers Rambust?

May 9, 2001
The Inquirer

That clause would apply in the US, says EBN, because it applies to geographic territories where patents are toppled.

The decision by Judge Robert Payne to rule that Infineon did not infringe Rambus payments means the intellectual property firm won't pick up any money from Samsung, if the clause exists.

Memory market in freefall, CPUs following

By Marco Fumagalli

May 9, 2001
The Inquirer

INTEL Rumours of yet another price cut in May are driving prices down further with the Pentium III 1.0GHz breaking the barrier of US$200. There is plenty of (over)supply from big vendors and OEMs while the demand remains very sluggish. All Pentium 4 flavours (including 1.7GHz) are available in Europe, but sales do not seem to be picking up yet.

Via turns into four letter word

By Mike Magee

May 9, 2001
The Inquirer

Useful addons and 815s here at Tom's HW.

And Hard OCP mentions the Pabstmeister in connection with Tom's Hard News... Just a coincidence, we are assured...

Infineon seeks $105 million from Rambus

By Bloomberg News

May 8, 2001
C/Net

Infineon's demand for damages is a twist in a patent-infringement case originally brought by Rambus. A federal judge in the case threw out the patent claims last week, leaving only Infineon's counterclaims that Los Altos, Calif.-based Rambus violated fraud and racketeering statutes.

Rambus could lose Samsung's SDRAM royalties

By Jack Robertson

May 8, 2001
EBN

Samsung, the biggest global DRAM producer, currently pays Rambus royalties of 3.5% on its double-data rate (DDR) DRAMs and 0.75% on its synchronous DRAMs.

Casio brings Transmeta-powered Windows/Linux laptop to U.S.

By Michael Kanellos

May 8, 2001
C/Net

Casio will release on Wednesday in the United States its Fiva MPC-206E notebook, which contains a copy of Windows Me and a subset of Linux. As previously reported, consumers can use Windows to run most applications on the notebook but can switch to Linux to play MP3 tunes or read certain files.

RLX unveils Transmeta-powered server

By Reuters

May 8, 2001
C/Net

The server promises to be up to 10 times more power-efficient than those based on processors from Intel, the dominant player in the server business. Because they generate less heat, RLX's servers can be stacked closer with less danger of overheating.

Pentium 4 Xeon chips delayed a few weeks

By Michael Kanellos

May 8, 2001
C/Net

The chip, originally slated to come out Tuesday, was delayed because of a flaw in the chip packaging--the housing that holds the core microprocessor--discovered at the end of April, an Intel representative said. A fix is being implemented.

The chip, which will run at 1.4GHz or faster, will now come out toward the end of May. Workstations using the chip will come out at the same time, the representative added.

Truths...from the rumor mill

Rambus shares lose more Rambucks

By Mike Magee

May 7, 2001
The Inquirer

That followed His Honor Judge Robert E. Payne's summary judgement against the Los Altos firm on Friday in a patent infringement action Rambus had made against Infineon dubbed Crispgate.

Richard Crisp, a former RMBS employee, gave his name to Crispgate - a term which The Inquirer applies to all litigation over DDR and SDRAM licensing. He memorably described this writer at last year's Computex as a practitioner of Gonzo journalism, after Hunter S. Thompson's style of writing and living.

Magee has great day in Rambus trial

By Mike Magee

May 8, 2001
The Inquirer

Payne is a circuit judge but we suspect that he never realised the interest surrounding this case and that he would be in danger of turning into a circus judge.

Jury to judge Rambus fraud charge

By Tony Smith

May 8, 2001
The Register

The trial is expected to go to the jury this week, though the fraud charge is now the only remaining allegation its members will have to consider.

The irony is that Rambus, the company that initiated the legal action, is the only one left with charges to answer.

Intel Itanium to launch 29 May

By Tony Smith

May 8, 2001
The Register

Interestingly, Foster, the Pentium 4-based revision to the Xeon server processor family, will be launched on the same day. Foster was to have been launched today, but Intel delayed it to the end of the month because of a problem with the chip's in-system packaging.

Transmeta wins Toshiba over
Major blow to La Intella

By Mike Magee

May 7, 2001
The Inquirer

While TMTA shares seem to have fallen today as its lock-in period ends, it scored a significant win with Toshiba - a formerly very loyal Intel partner, Reuters is reporting in an interview with a key TMTA suit.

So perhaps people should be buying and not ditching the stock.

Tualatin moves up an Intel roadmap notch

By Mike Magee

May 7, 2001
The Inquirer

But, and more significantly given the flak Intel has had over its .13 micron process, it appears that DP Tualatins using ServerWorks LE3 or Micron Copperhead chipsets and at initial speeds of 1.13GHz with 512K of cache, will get out of the starting gate earlier than we expected, and will be released in early-to-mid June, if not earlier. They will be followed by 1.26GHz and >1.26GHz Tualatins - again aimed at the DP server market.

Tualatin hogs Intel mobile map Q3

By Mike Magee

May 8, 2001
The Inquirer

The latest notebook roadmaps Intel has shown its distributors and dealers has Tualatin mobile processors hogging the professional (>$3,000) and mainstream performance (>$,2500) systems during Q3.

Further, the roadmaps, which have only just been distributed, show that Intel intends to displace the 1GHz 1GHz Pentium III mobile with the Tualatin mobile chip in the same quarter.

Intel puts back Pentium 4 Xeon launch

By Tony Smith

May 8, 2001
The Register

Apparently, there's a problem with the daughtercard and related components onto which the CPU is mounted - all the stuff hidden away in those black boxes Intel now ships its processors in.

An Intel spokesman confirmed the delay, and was keen to stress that the fault was not a silicon problem, that a solution had already been found and the company's customers had been notified.

RLX, Transmeta win in IBM server deal

By Reuters

May 7, 2001
C/Net

The servers will be unveiled Tuesday by RLX, which is based in The Woodlands, Texas. The company was formed four months ago under the leadership of Gary Stimac, one of Compaq's earliest employees and former head of its server division.

Toshiba notebook becomes Transmeta's biggest CPU design win yet

May 7, 2001
Semiconductor Business News

Toshiba said it will make its Crusoe-based notebook available in Japan on May 18. The 2.4-pound computer--called Libretto L1/060TNMM--will offer 14 hours of battery life using a 600-MHz central processor from Transmeta.

Transmeta sinks as share lockup expires

By Margaret Kane

May 7, 2001
C/Net

Shares of Transmeta were off $3.43, or 23 percent, to $11.14 in morning trading.

A "lockup" arises from a Securities and Exchange Commission rule that prevents insiders from selling shares for 180 days following an IPO. Transmeta went public Dec. 4. Insiders such as venture capitalists, company executives, employees and other early investors often own shares of a pre-IPO company at low prices--pennies in some cases. Once a lockup period expires, these early investors are free to sell.

AMD believes Intel's price cuts will backfire

By Jack Robertson

May 7, 2001
EBN

A recent column summed up the feeling of processor analysts that Intel's severe Pentium 4 discounting was a solar plexus blow trying to cripple AMD's strong market position in consumer PCs. But Ben Anexter, Advanced Micro Devices Inc.s' vice president of external affairs, responded that his firm is ready to take whatever punches Intel throws, and wonders if Intel won't end up hurting itself far more.

Rambus case heads to jury

By George Leopold

May 7, 2001
EE Times

The jury is expected to decide fraud and racketeering charges against Rambus (Los Altos, Calif.) involving its participation in SDRAM standards deliberations before a Joint Electron Device Engineering Council (Jedec) committee. Infineon's remaining counter-claim before the jury involves allegations that Rambus concealed its SDRAM patent applications during the standards debate.

Infineon fights on with Rambus countersuit

By Michael Kanellos

May 7, 2001
C/Net

A federal judge in Virginia on Friday dismissed the three remaining charges in Rambus' patent infringement suit against Infineon. Rambus said it will appeal.

In its countersuit, Infineon alleges that Rambus should be barred from collecting royalties on the production of SDRAM, the most common form of memory in computers today, and double data-rate (DDR) DRAM, a high-speed version of SDRAM, because of its conduct while a member of a standards-setting body.

Truths...from the rumor mill

AMD names Athlon follow up Barton after judge

By John Lettice

May 7, 2001
The Register

But the hell with that, for the moment - what kind of a name for a product is that? we thought. With Athlon, AMD has barely scratched the surface of codenames based on Highland regiments. What about Seaforth, Gordon, Black Watch (well, maybe not)?

Transmeta nets Toshiba
Chipmaker's 'Crusoe' processor will power new notebook computers

By Richard Richtmyer

May 7, 2001
CNN/Fn

The deal marks one of the most substantial design-wins for the Santa Clara, Calif.-based chipmaker's "Crusoe" processor, and solidifies its strategic position as a supplier of chips for "ultralight" portable computers weighing less than three pounds and measuring one inch or less in height.

"A win with Toshiba really takes them into a whole new category of customers, putting them into the top tier," said Alex Gauna, semiconductor analyst at Banc of America Montgomery Securities.

Toshiba to sell Transmeta-powered laptop

By John G. Spooner

May 6, 2001
C/Net

The notebook maker will announce a Crusoe-based Libretto L1/060TNMM mini-notebook that will ship May 18 in Japan.

With Monday's Toshiba agreement under its belt, Transmeta is on a roll, gaining the business of a number of Japanese PC makers since last fall. Sources close to the company say a notebook deal from a larger PC maker, such as Compaq Computer, isn't out of the question before the end of the year.

Rambus loses SDRAM lawsuit against Infineon, plans appeal

By Jack Robertson

May 4, 2001
EBN

By absolving Infineon, the judge removed the German chip maker itself from any liability, but that left the Rambus SDRAM and DDR patents standing.

By continuing the trial on the issue of Rambus' alleged secrecy at the industry JEDEC standards committee, Judge Payne left the door open for the synchronous patents to be declared unenforceable on the grounds of antitrust violations.

Judge scraps Rambus suit against Infineon

By Ian Fried

May 4, 2001
C/Net

Rambus had sought a court ruling that Inifineon's production of standard SDRAM and DDR-DRAM memory chips infringes on Rambus patents. Other chipmakers already have agreed to pay royalties to Rambus for those chips. However, analysts say that should Rambus ultimately lose in court, those that settled would likely not have to pay Rambus.

AMD plans successor to Athlon next year

By Jack Robertson

May 4, 2001
EBN

Barton will use AMD's new silicon-on-insulator (SOI) processing at its Dresden, Germany, fab, and will follow in the wake of the 32-bit/64-bit Claw Hammer processor, the first AMD chip to use SOI processing.

Intel, AMD sign new licensing deal

By Ian Fried

May 4, 2001
C/Net

The two companies signed a 10-year patent-licensing deal, the fourth pact between the companies since 1976. The deal is retroactive to Jan. 1, when the previous agreement expired.

A source familiar with the deal said it is essentially similar to the last one, which calls for Intel to receive royalties from AMD. Intel has patents covering aspects of the x86 instruction set used in processors for Windows-based PCs.

AMD readies HyperTransport bus consortium

By Jerry Ascierto

May 4, 2001
EE Times

While little is known about the 3GIO spec, a bus charged with supplanting PCI technology in the desktop market, AMD hopes to make HyperTransport an open standard soon, inviting participation in the spec's ongoing development. A HyperTransport industry consortium is imminent, said AMD technology evangelist Gabriele Sartori.

Truths...from the rumor mill

Intel putting squeeze on potential customers - Transmeta boss

By Tony Smith

May 3, 2001
The Register

Speaking at a Merrill Lynch technology conference this week, Transmeta's chief, Mark Allen, said: "I'm sure there is some pressure applied to them, no question."

Allen cited Dell as an example. "AMD has been trying to crack Dell for quite some time," he said, claiming that Intel gives the PC vendors "very preferential treatment, very preferential pricing".

Intel-Compaq attempt to pre-empt Transmeta

By Mike Magee

May 6, 2001
The Inquirer

According to the FT, Compaq will announce a family of Quickblade servers tomorrow, while RLX systems, which uses Transmeta microprocessors, is expected to announce servers based on these chips on Tuesday.

According to the newspaper, Intel's CEO Craig Barrett will announce the ultradense servers at the opening of the Networld+Interop show this week.

Rambus case thrown out

By Mike Magee

May 5, 2001
The Inquirer

But the game is not quite over. According to this local news report, the jury will next argue about allegations of fraud and also about legal costs in the affair.

And, according to this report at the Fred Hager site, the case was sent in Infineon's direction as a matter of fact and now of law. Further, this report claims confidence that the ruling will be over-turned at appeal.

Rambus loses patent fight

By Drew Cullen

May 5, 2001
The Register

"We are disappointed with the court's decision," said Rambus CEO Geoff Tate."If today's decision is allowed to stand, all companies that innovate risk having their intellectual property rights unjustly expropriated."

Boxed Intel P4s not available for love nor money?

By Tony Smith

May 3, 2001
The Register

According to resellers, Intel is telling anyone who wants to order a 1.7GHz P4 they'll have to wait at least four weeks for it - no matter how many they order, The Inquirer reports.

There are also reports that all the other versions of the P4 - 1.3GHz, 1.4GHz and 1.5GHz - are also in short supply, with the latter particularly hard to get hold of.

Pentium 4 shortages: the evidence

By Mike Magee

May 3, 2001
The Inquirer

Screen shots we have obtained from dealers who use Tech Data, one of the bigger distributors in the Americas, prove that, as of yesterday, supplies of the boxed Pentium 4 1.7GHz processors are severely constrained.

AMD's 10 year deal with Intel
Secret licence conditions revealed

By Phil Trent

May 6, 2001
The Inquirer

1. Jerry promises to suffer relapse in his foot-in-mouth disease to scare off investors.
2. AMD will co-opt Intel's P4 strategy by allowing Hammer to be rushed, crippled, and then claim that it is way too advanced for today's "outdated software". It is rumored to have Starburst (fruitchew) architecture.
3. ...

VIA Pentium 4 plans take shape

By Tony Smith

May 3, 2001
The Register

VIA's plans call for two chipsets: the integrated P4M266 and the discrete chipset P4X266, originally designated the PX266.

The P4M266 will incorporate 4x AGP and VIA's S3 Savage 4 graphics technology. It will be announced officially in September, sampling later in the year and entering volume production during Q1 2002.

AMD plots 15 May server, mobile Athlon launch

By Tony Smith

May 4, 2001
The Register

That, at least, is the most likely scenario. What the company will unveil isn't yet known for certain, but piecing together snippets of information from a variety of sources close to AMD and to its reseller channel, we expect AMD to unveil three varieties of the chip, aimed at the server, desktop and notebook markets, respectively.