AMD and Oil Money - Finally sustainability for the Princes…maybe
November 22, 2008
We’re all aware that AMD is planning to spin off into separate companies in order to reduce debt and increase their growth option. But where do these large sums of money magically come from?
Oil baby, Abu Dhabi oil! In these trying economic times who else has the resources to fund a potentially dead and extremely expensive (operating, R&D, Fabs) company. Consider that in recent quarterly releases the most profitable companies were all oil based. Exxon, Shell, etc… To help put this in perspective, take a look at this:
“Exxon’s $40.6 billion profit in 2007 is roughly equal to receiving “$30 for every person in China and $132 for every U.S. resident.” Another way of looking at it is that Exxon made $77,245 per minute in 2007—that’s more money generated per minute than 70 percent of Americans earned all year, according to the Census Bureau.
Shell also had a record breaking year. Its $31.3 billion 2007 profit set a new company record, and was 23 percent higher than its $25.4 billion profit in 2006.” — American Progress
So, what’s in it for the Abu Dhabi Government…long-term sustainability! You didn’t think that the princes of the middle east were just going to role over and die once the oil dried up did you?
AMD splitting - The logical solution
October 7, 2008
AMD has officially announced that it is splitting into two companies - one to design chips and one to carry out the actual fabrication process.
Abu Dhabi investment firms will be handing over an estimated $6-billion to the new companies. This fundage will also be used to create a new chip fabrication plant in Albany, New York and to refurbish one in Germany.
Considering that AMD is holding on to a $5-billion debt we hope that this solution will be enough to trump the possibility of shutting down shop. Hopefully, reducing the chance that Intel will completely monopolize the chip market. After all, competition reduces chip prices for us the consumer.
Good luck AMD & the newly founded ATIC (Advanced Technology Investment Company)
AMD Releases X4 9950 BE - Intel laughs uncontrollably
July 1, 2008
AMD just released it’s X4 9950 Black Edition quad-core 2.6GHz processor. This is AMD’s top of the line desktop processor. It’s meant for enthusiasts that want to tweak and overclock. The 9950 is a mere 5% fast than AMD’s previous flagship (9850). In turn, this processor now matches Intel’s Q6600, making Intel laugh while pointing their green little fingers.
C’mon AMD! What happened to leading the pack in terms of new and innovative processors? If you keep lagging behind Intel we’ll be calling you Cyrix in a few months.
AMD secures $622 million
November 18, 2007
hasn’t exactly been on-top of their financial game since Intel decided to throw in the towel for them. Intel’s Core series took all of us by storm and AMD saw a drastic fall in market share.
Once AMD purchased ATI, their money problems looked like they were going to overtake the company and cause some chapter 11 filings.
However, it seems that an investment company based in the United Arab Emirates believes their is still potential with AMD. Mubadala has purchased a 8.1% share in AMD for $622-million. Good news or Bad news for AMD — Only time will tell.
The Good news in our opinion is that AMD will stay kicking for some time. Consumers need competition between Intel and another company or we will be at the mercy of Intel’s share holders.
