The semiconductor market is expected to increase by 29 percent this year, but the jump in revenues does not reflect a return to the tech boom of the late 1990s, a market research firm said this week.
Semiconductor revenues are expected to reach US$214.7 billion this year, vying with 2000 for record-high annual revenue, In-Stat/MDR said.
The market recovery, which follows an 18.3 percent increase in 2003, indicates semiconductor revenues have come a long way from the disastrous 32 percent decline in 2001, In-Stat said.
'(However,) although we do not expect a replay of 2001 anytime soon, the strength of the current recovery should not be interpreted as a return to the good old days,' In-Stat analyst Mark Kirstein said in a statement.
'Fundamental changes are taking place in both the demand and supply aspects of the semiconductor market that will cause the next decade to be significantly different from the last.'
Among the differences is the lack of a single new 'killer app' on the horizon to drive future market growth as PCs and mobile phones did in 90s, the research firm said. In addition, standardisation and extreme competition, which tend to drive down prices, are expected to suppress revenue growth.
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