NECKARTENZLINGEN, GERMANY & NETANYA, ISRAEL: Hirschmann Car Communication GmbH (HCC), the world market leader in the area of TV receivers for the automotive industry and Siano Mobile Silicon, the leading supplier of mobile digital TV receiver chips – announced that a leading German automobile manufacturer has started distribution of a few car models equipped with HCC’s latest automotive digital TV reception system, powered by Siano receiver chips.
HCC’s innovative automotive TV reception systems deploys Siano receiver chips designed to cover various digital TV standards in different regions worldwide – DVB-T for Europe and Australia, CMMB for China. Additionally, ISDB-T for Japan and South America will complete the portfolio in the same architecture. HCC’s TV reception systems, used by a number of leading car manufacturers, are characterized by exceptionally high performance and high reliability.
"With the type of customers we serve, we can never compromise on quality. This is why we selected Siano’s solutions," said Thomas Adam, head of Development from HCC. "We tested the receivers powered by Siano, at extreme mobility conditions, and measured very good results. We anticipate steady growth in the demand for in-car digital TV solutions and we will continue to enhance our product portfolio in close collaboration with our partner Siano.”
Alon Ironi, CEO of Siano, said: "The back seat of a car driving on a highway is perhaps the ultimate test for mobile TV. Using Siano’s enhanced Antenna Diversity technology combined with our sophisticated algorithms, HCC can provide passengers with a superior, high-quality mobile TV viewing experience. Siano is proud to be an integral part of the communication systems for some of the leading car manufacturers in the world."
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Monday, August 8, 2011
Financial markets IT spend to hit $18 billion in Asia-Pacific
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA: Spending on IT by the financial markets industry will hit $90 billion by 2015 globally, driven by strong growth in Asia-Pacific (AP) and a bounce-back in the hedge funds sector, predicts Ovum.
In a new forecast, the independent technology analyst finds that the Asia-Pacific region will see some of the strongest growth in financial markets IT spend accounting to $18 billion, as global companies continue to transfer power to the region due to its growing economic strength.
In China, IT spending will grow by a CAGR of 8.8 per cent from 2011 to 2015. Hong Kong will experience a CAGR of 8.1 per cent for the same period and Singapore 7.1 per cent. Although the amounts invested will be lower, growth in all three will outstrip the US and the UK and Ireland, which will hit CAGRs of 6 per cent and 5.8 per cent, respectively.
Daniel Mayo, Ovum financial markets technology analyst, commented: “While there will be growth in nearly every major market, the Asia-Pacific countries will be at the forefront. This is mainly due to global companies shifting their decision-making power from New York and London to cities such as Beijing, because of their growing economic influence.”
Meanwhile, AP spending on IT in the hedge funds sector will grow a CAGR of 14 per cent from 2011 to 2015. This is the strongest growth of all the lines of business and is being driven by resurgence in the hedge funds market as investors seeking high returns forgive the woes of 2008/09.
Mayo commented: “The global hedge funds market was badly affected by the financial crash, with investors staying away due to its disastrous performance. As a result, investment in IT fell significantly in 2008 and 2009. However, the Asia Pacific market proved far more resilient and as investors seek higher returns is set to be a major driver for industry growth in 2011.
According to Mayo, much of the investment in all regions and lines of business will be made in risk management systems, as well as reporting systems that allow financial markets companies to provide greater transparency and comply with new industry regulations such as Basel III.
In a new forecast, the independent technology analyst finds that the Asia-Pacific region will see some of the strongest growth in financial markets IT spend accounting to $18 billion, as global companies continue to transfer power to the region due to its growing economic strength.
In China, IT spending will grow by a CAGR of 8.8 per cent from 2011 to 2015. Hong Kong will experience a CAGR of 8.1 per cent for the same period and Singapore 7.1 per cent. Although the amounts invested will be lower, growth in all three will outstrip the US and the UK and Ireland, which will hit CAGRs of 6 per cent and 5.8 per cent, respectively.
Daniel Mayo, Ovum financial markets technology analyst, commented: “While there will be growth in nearly every major market, the Asia-Pacific countries will be at the forefront. This is mainly due to global companies shifting their decision-making power from New York and London to cities such as Beijing, because of their growing economic influence.”
Meanwhile, AP spending on IT in the hedge funds sector will grow a CAGR of 14 per cent from 2011 to 2015. This is the strongest growth of all the lines of business and is being driven by resurgence in the hedge funds market as investors seeking high returns forgive the woes of 2008/09.
Mayo commented: “The global hedge funds market was badly affected by the financial crash, with investors staying away due to its disastrous performance. As a result, investment in IT fell significantly in 2008 and 2009. However, the Asia Pacific market proved far more resilient and as investors seek higher returns is set to be a major driver for industry growth in 2011.
According to Mayo, much of the investment in all regions and lines of business will be made in risk management systems, as well as reporting systems that allow financial markets companies to provide greater transparency and comply with new industry regulations such as Basel III.
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Indian businesses focus data protection strategies on cloud computing
BANGALORE, INDIA: CA Technologies announced the results of an independent survey that shows businesses in India are increasingly using cloud computing as a key component of their data protection plans. Fifty three percent say that within the next year, cloud will play an important part of their disaster recovery and data protection strategies. The results show that as the adoption of cloud becomes more widespread, companies are beginning to appreciate that cloud resources offer a solution for business continuity.
The report: ‘Insights: Data Protection and the Cloud’ highlights that data protection investment in continues on an upward trajectory. Of the 201 organizations surveyed across India nearly all (94 percent) have seen their data protection budgets remain flat or increase from 2010 to 2011, with 67 percent enjoying increased investment. The research explored where these budgets will be directed over the coming year, and the findings again underscored the importance of cloud computing.
Over half of companies (59 percent) will focus investment on managing a hybrid cloud environment, where private clouds are supplemented with access to resources in public clouds. Thirty percent plan to invest in using public cloud as a backup solution, and similarly, 25 percent companies will also focus on better protection of their private cloud.
“The research we’ve released today is really encouraging – increasing numbers of companies plan to use cloud as part of their business continuity strategy,” said Chris Ross, VP EMEA & Asia-Pacific, CA Technologies Data Management CSU. “We’re seeing lots of businesses use the cloud for offsite back-up and disaster recovery purposes and the survey indicates that many are now looking to a more sophisticated hybrid cloud model too. This highlights the need for a solution that allows them to evolve their data protection strategy at their own pace – whether it be new on-premise technology, using cloud as backup medium or moving to a more complex hybrid cloud model.”
Frequent data loss incidents, yet inadequate data protection
Despite the integration of cloud and the positive trend in data protection spending, companies are still vulnerable – 88 percent of the surveyed companies admitted they have experienced application and data loss incidents in the last year. The most common cause was IT systems failures – such as network, storage, hardware or software failures – which affected over half (53 percent) of the surveyed organizations.
This high level of data loss is reflected by the companies’ apparent lack of readiness for these types of incidents. Only 27 percent of the companies are confident enough to say they have a full and comprehensive disaster recovery plan. Furthermore, while a high 83 percent run full testing of their disaster recovery plans at least once a year, a significant 56 percent don’t achieve their recovery time and recovery point objectives in these tests.
When asked about the barriers to improving their data protection and disaster recovery operations, 38 percent pointed to inadequate training of IT personnel, 34 percent to lack of employee understanding of procedures and 34 percent to inadequate buy in from senior management.
The report: ‘Insights: Data Protection and the Cloud’ highlights that data protection investment in continues on an upward trajectory. Of the 201 organizations surveyed across India nearly all (94 percent) have seen their data protection budgets remain flat or increase from 2010 to 2011, with 67 percent enjoying increased investment. The research explored where these budgets will be directed over the coming year, and the findings again underscored the importance of cloud computing.
Over half of companies (59 percent) will focus investment on managing a hybrid cloud environment, where private clouds are supplemented with access to resources in public clouds. Thirty percent plan to invest in using public cloud as a backup solution, and similarly, 25 percent companies will also focus on better protection of their private cloud.
“The research we’ve released today is really encouraging – increasing numbers of companies plan to use cloud as part of their business continuity strategy,” said Chris Ross, VP EMEA & Asia-Pacific, CA Technologies Data Management CSU. “We’re seeing lots of businesses use the cloud for offsite back-up and disaster recovery purposes and the survey indicates that many are now looking to a more sophisticated hybrid cloud model too. This highlights the need for a solution that allows them to evolve their data protection strategy at their own pace – whether it be new on-premise technology, using cloud as backup medium or moving to a more complex hybrid cloud model.”
Frequent data loss incidents, yet inadequate data protection
Despite the integration of cloud and the positive trend in data protection spending, companies are still vulnerable – 88 percent of the surveyed companies admitted they have experienced application and data loss incidents in the last year. The most common cause was IT systems failures – such as network, storage, hardware or software failures – which affected over half (53 percent) of the surveyed organizations.
This high level of data loss is reflected by the companies’ apparent lack of readiness for these types of incidents. Only 27 percent of the companies are confident enough to say they have a full and comprehensive disaster recovery plan. Furthermore, while a high 83 percent run full testing of their disaster recovery plans at least once a year, a significant 56 percent don’t achieve their recovery time and recovery point objectives in these tests.
When asked about the barriers to improving their data protection and disaster recovery operations, 38 percent pointed to inadequate training of IT personnel, 34 percent to lack of employee understanding of procedures and 34 percent to inadequate buy in from senior management.
Can Seagate’s thin hard drive stave off threat of SSDs?
EL SEGUNDO, USA: Seagate Technology LLC’s introduction of a super-slim hard disk drive (HDD) could help the HDD industry stave off the incursion of solid-state drives (SSDs) in the notebook personal computers (PCs) and media tablet markets, according to data from the IHS iSuppli Memory and Storage Service.
“Although shipments of SSDs for notebooks will be miniscule compared to HDDs during the next few years, the solid state drives are shaving off points of market share that are critical to maintaining the growth of the hard drive business,” said Fang Zhang, analyst, storage systems, for IHS. “Furthermore, SSDs are universally employed in media tablets, which are eating into the sales of notebook and netbook PCs. Seagate’s new Momentus Thin HDD represents an attempt by the hard drive industry to answer the challenge of SSDs in notebooks—and even in media tablets—by undercutting the cost of solid-state drives while providing higher densities.”
SSD shipments in notebooks will rise to 16.8 million units in 2015, up from 4.7 million in 2010, as presented in the figure below. This will represent only a single-digit percentage of the notebook storage market compared to HDDs through the year 2015.
However, this small percentage is impacting the growth of the notebook HDD market.
The notebook HDD market set to expand at a 9.7 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from 2010 to 2015. The combined market for HDDs and SDDs will rise at a CAGR of 10.2 percent. This indicates the solid-state drives will shave off half a percentage point of growth from the notebook HDD market during the five year period.
The rising sales of media tablets could have an even bigger impact on notebook HDD sales. Media tablets, which employ flash memory for storage, are expected to have a negative impact on sales of notebook PCs, and thus the HDDs used in them.
Seagate’s Momentus Thin HDD could find acceptance in netbook and notebook computers, preventing SSDs from making further inroads. However, the near term opportunity for these drives in tablets is limited. HDD-based models are expected to account for 2 percent or less of the total tablet market in 2012, IHS predicts.
Momentus event for storage
Seagate in June announced its Momentus Thin HDD, a 2.5-inch drive that is only 7 millimeters thick. The Momentus is set to be available in September. The HDD has capacities ranging from 160GB to 320GB, with speeds of 7200RPM and 5400RPM, and 16MB of cache.
The thin form factor makes the Momentus suitable for mobile platforms. However, the Momentus may really set itself apart from SSDs in terms of cost and capacity.
Seagate said the Momentus Thin HDDs are being used in what it called the world’s first handheld tablet computers with hard drives: the G9 8- and 10-inch tablets from ARCHOS. The manufacturers’ suggested retail prices for the ARCHOS 80 G9 and ARCHOS 101 GB tablets are $279 and $349. Seagate said that was a significantly lower price than competitive flash-based tablets, which cost between $349 to $829, with densities from 16GB to 64GB.
A tablet using the Momentus Thin HDD can have 10 times the storage capacity of a flash-based tablet. Momentus Thin HDD-based tablets also can be significantly lighter than HDD-based netbooks due to the reduction of the 2.5-inch drive size.
HDD disadvantages
The disadvantages of HDD-based tablets include a potentially shorter battery life, a longer boost time and a relatively heavy weight compared to flash-based tablets. These drawbacks may serve as a disincentive to some tablet users who require speed and mobility.
Source: IHS iSuppli, USA.
“Although shipments of SSDs for notebooks will be miniscule compared to HDDs during the next few years, the solid state drives are shaving off points of market share that are critical to maintaining the growth of the hard drive business,” said Fang Zhang, analyst, storage systems, for IHS. “Furthermore, SSDs are universally employed in media tablets, which are eating into the sales of notebook and netbook PCs. Seagate’s new Momentus Thin HDD represents an attempt by the hard drive industry to answer the challenge of SSDs in notebooks—and even in media tablets—by undercutting the cost of solid-state drives while providing higher densities.”
SSD shipments in notebooks will rise to 16.8 million units in 2015, up from 4.7 million in 2010, as presented in the figure below. This will represent only a single-digit percentage of the notebook storage market compared to HDDs through the year 2015.
However, this small percentage is impacting the growth of the notebook HDD market.
The notebook HDD market set to expand at a 9.7 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from 2010 to 2015. The combined market for HDDs and SDDs will rise at a CAGR of 10.2 percent. This indicates the solid-state drives will shave off half a percentage point of growth from the notebook HDD market during the five year period.
The rising sales of media tablets could have an even bigger impact on notebook HDD sales. Media tablets, which employ flash memory for storage, are expected to have a negative impact on sales of notebook PCs, and thus the HDDs used in them.
Seagate’s Momentus Thin HDD could find acceptance in netbook and notebook computers, preventing SSDs from making further inroads. However, the near term opportunity for these drives in tablets is limited. HDD-based models are expected to account for 2 percent or less of the total tablet market in 2012, IHS predicts.
Momentus event for storage
Seagate in June announced its Momentus Thin HDD, a 2.5-inch drive that is only 7 millimeters thick. The Momentus is set to be available in September. The HDD has capacities ranging from 160GB to 320GB, with speeds of 7200RPM and 5400RPM, and 16MB of cache.
The thin form factor makes the Momentus suitable for mobile platforms. However, the Momentus may really set itself apart from SSDs in terms of cost and capacity.
Seagate said the Momentus Thin HDDs are being used in what it called the world’s first handheld tablet computers with hard drives: the G9 8- and 10-inch tablets from ARCHOS. The manufacturers’ suggested retail prices for the ARCHOS 80 G9 and ARCHOS 101 GB tablets are $279 and $349. Seagate said that was a significantly lower price than competitive flash-based tablets, which cost between $349 to $829, with densities from 16GB to 64GB.
A tablet using the Momentus Thin HDD can have 10 times the storage capacity of a flash-based tablet. Momentus Thin HDD-based tablets also can be significantly lighter than HDD-based netbooks due to the reduction of the 2.5-inch drive size.
HDD disadvantages
The disadvantages of HDD-based tablets include a potentially shorter battery life, a longer boost time and a relatively heavy weight compared to flash-based tablets. These drawbacks may serve as a disincentive to some tablet users who require speed and mobility.
Source: IHS iSuppli, USA.
Eltek receives $0.5 million of PCB orders for use in advanced medical equipment
PETACH-TIKVA, ISRAEL: Eltek Ltd, the leading Israeli manufacturer of advanced flex-rigid circuitry solutions, has received orders valued at $490,000. The orders include high-end flex-rigid PCBs (printed circuit boards) for use in advanced medical devices by a US medical equipment manufacturer. The orders are expected to be delivered between October 2011 and February 2012.
These orders are a result of Eltek's continued focus on the medical and defense sectors as part of its growth strategy. Total orders since the beginning of 2011 from this customer amount to $900,000.
Arieh Reichart, president and CEO of Eltek, said: "We are proud to have been selected as the supplier of PCBs for use in advanced medical equipment, which reflects the recognition of our high technological capabilities. Eltek is receiving increased recognition by worldwide customers based on the high quality and reliability of its products. According to our long term business plan, we are continuing to focus our efforts on strengthening our position in the medical and defense global markets."
These orders are a result of Eltek's continued focus on the medical and defense sectors as part of its growth strategy. Total orders since the beginning of 2011 from this customer amount to $900,000.
Arieh Reichart, president and CEO of Eltek, said: "We are proud to have been selected as the supplier of PCBs for use in advanced medical equipment, which reflects the recognition of our high technological capabilities. Eltek is receiving increased recognition by worldwide customers based on the high quality and reliability of its products. According to our long term business plan, we are continuing to focus our efforts on strengthening our position in the medical and defense global markets."
Shipment and panel procurement by top six TV brands in China continued to decline by 1.7 percent and 4.3 percent in June
TAIWAN: According to the report of complete unit shipment in June published by WitsView, the panel research arm of TrendForce, and Ī£intell, the shipment of complete TV unit continued to decline in June 2011, the monthly decline was 1.7 percent, the total shipment was 2.598 million units; panel procurement also dropped 4.3 percent relative to May's, this was a repeated decline since the monthly decline in February, the total panel demand was 3.04 million units.
Overview of shipment in first half of the year and in June by top six brands
Burrell Liu, research Director of WitsView, indicated that it's about 43 million according to the annual shipment plan by China's top six brands and the total estimates. However, WitsView's estimate of shipment by the top six brands was only 38-39 million, the total demand of LCD TV in the China region was about 41-42 million.
Judging from the total shipments by the top six brands in the first half of the year, total shipment was about 15.42 million units. The top three were Hisense, TCL, and Skyworth, at market shares of 22 percent, 21 percent, and 20 percent, respectively; Haier ranked last at a share of less than 10 percent. The shipment ratio of LED TV in the first half of the year accounted for 39% of its total shipment, it's estimated that the penetration rate of the Chinese brand LED TV was about 47 percent.
Usage overview of panel procured by top six brands in first half of the year and in June
The panel shipment of CMI accounted for 31 percent of the top six brands in June, its market share ranked first for two consecutive months, up 39 percent YoY, up 0.6 percent MoM. LGD ranked second at 27 percent, up 2 percent MoM; the market shares of Samsung and AUO ranked third and fourth at 21 percent and 17 percent, respectively.
Table 1 shows the ratio of panel manufacturers among the top six brands in the first half of the year, CMI and LGD both ranked first at a 29 percent, SEC and AUO accounted for 19 percent and 17 percent, respectively, the ratios from both sides showed a 50:50 split, its obvious the Taiwanese manufacturers did not have much of a business advantage. In addition, panel production lines for large-sized TV in China came out one after another, panel manufacturers in Taiwan needs a careful evaluation of their follow-up, long-term business strategies.
Source: WitsView, Taiwan.
The global demand of complete LCD TV was worsened by problems such as the 311 Japanese earthquake, the Greece credit, the skyrocketing of the crude oil prices, global inflation, etc, thus lowering consumer confidence; this coupled with the rise of the tablet PC have crowded out the strength of consumer spending in other products. The global demand for LCD TV has been adjusted downward repeatedly, WitsView estimated annual worldwide demand will be adjusted to 201-203 million, the market share of the top 10 worldwide LCD TV brands is around 74-75 percent (Table 2).
Source: WitsView, Taiwan.
Conclusion
Shipment by China's top six brands declined in two consecutive months, the primary causes were the digestion of inventory by the distribution channels, coupled with the weak demand in the low season, the brand shipment was blocked.
The replenishment of panel inventory in May and June and the advance stocking at the top six brands raised the level of panel inventory quickly to around six weeks, the panel inventory levels at certain brands have exceeded the warning level for the low season, it's estimated that the panel usage will be adjusted downward in July, this coupled with the international brands adjusting their annual plan downward have once again indicated that the demand for LCD TV in the third quarter remains flat.
Thus, the short-term strategy and the top priority is that the panel manufacturers must control their production capacity effectively to suppress the continued imbalance in supply and demand. It will also have an encouraging effect to stabilize the follow-up panel prices.
In the future, the panel manufacturers in Korea and China (BOE/CSOT, etc.) not only have great assistance from their governments to continue expanding their production capacity, but they also have strategic cooperation of co-branding and their own brands to assist them in expanding their market shares, (for example: strategic alliance between Samsung and Sony for Sony, and LGE and Philips for LGD, etc., and the panel manufacturers in China has the Chinese domestic brands as their outgoing seaports). In the future, in order to develop a close and stable cooperation and branding strategy as the business guidelines, Taiwanese panel manufacturers should carefully evaluate their long-term strategic directions.
Overview of shipment in first half of the year and in June by top six brands
Burrell Liu, research Director of WitsView, indicated that it's about 43 million according to the annual shipment plan by China's top six brands and the total estimates. However, WitsView's estimate of shipment by the top six brands was only 38-39 million, the total demand of LCD TV in the China region was about 41-42 million.
Judging from the total shipments by the top six brands in the first half of the year, total shipment was about 15.42 million units. The top three were Hisense, TCL, and Skyworth, at market shares of 22 percent, 21 percent, and 20 percent, respectively; Haier ranked last at a share of less than 10 percent. The shipment ratio of LED TV in the first half of the year accounted for 39% of its total shipment, it's estimated that the penetration rate of the Chinese brand LED TV was about 47 percent.
Usage overview of panel procured by top six brands in first half of the year and in June
The panel shipment of CMI accounted for 31 percent of the top six brands in June, its market share ranked first for two consecutive months, up 39 percent YoY, up 0.6 percent MoM. LGD ranked second at 27 percent, up 2 percent MoM; the market shares of Samsung and AUO ranked third and fourth at 21 percent and 17 percent, respectively.
Table 1 shows the ratio of panel manufacturers among the top six brands in the first half of the year, CMI and LGD both ranked first at a 29 percent, SEC and AUO accounted for 19 percent and 17 percent, respectively, the ratios from both sides showed a 50:50 split, its obvious the Taiwanese manufacturers did not have much of a business advantage. In addition, panel production lines for large-sized TV in China came out one after another, panel manufacturers in Taiwan needs a careful evaluation of their follow-up, long-term business strategies.
Source: WitsView, Taiwan.The global demand of complete LCD TV was worsened by problems such as the 311 Japanese earthquake, the Greece credit, the skyrocketing of the crude oil prices, global inflation, etc, thus lowering consumer confidence; this coupled with the rise of the tablet PC have crowded out the strength of consumer spending in other products. The global demand for LCD TV has been adjusted downward repeatedly, WitsView estimated annual worldwide demand will be adjusted to 201-203 million, the market share of the top 10 worldwide LCD TV brands is around 74-75 percent (Table 2).
Source: WitsView, Taiwan.Conclusion
Shipment by China's top six brands declined in two consecutive months, the primary causes were the digestion of inventory by the distribution channels, coupled with the weak demand in the low season, the brand shipment was blocked.
The replenishment of panel inventory in May and June and the advance stocking at the top six brands raised the level of panel inventory quickly to around six weeks, the panel inventory levels at certain brands have exceeded the warning level for the low season, it's estimated that the panel usage will be adjusted downward in July, this coupled with the international brands adjusting their annual plan downward have once again indicated that the demand for LCD TV in the third quarter remains flat.
Thus, the short-term strategy and the top priority is that the panel manufacturers must control their production capacity effectively to suppress the continued imbalance in supply and demand. It will also have an encouraging effect to stabilize the follow-up panel prices.
In the future, the panel manufacturers in Korea and China (BOE/CSOT, etc.) not only have great assistance from their governments to continue expanding their production capacity, but they also have strategic cooperation of co-branding and their own brands to assist them in expanding their market shares, (for example: strategic alliance between Samsung and Sony for Sony, and LGE and Philips for LGD, etc., and the panel manufacturers in China has the Chinese domestic brands as their outgoing seaports). In the future, in order to develop a close and stable cooperation and branding strategy as the business guidelines, Taiwanese panel manufacturers should carefully evaluate their long-term strategic directions.
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