Advanced Micro Devices, the No. 2 supplier of computer processors, is close to a deal to buy graphics chip maker ATI for $5.5 billion and unless talks break down, a deal could be announced as early as Monday, a source familiar with the situation said on Friday.
Any such deal would shake up the processor industry, which is witnessing a battle over market share between AMD and larger rival Intel.
Shares of ATI rallied on Friday on renewed speculation that a deal was close at hand. Rumors that AMD could purchase the Canadian graphics chip maker surfaced in late May when an analyst suggested the move could make AMD more competitive with Intel. The speculation sent ATI shares surging about 10 percent.
AMD shares closed at $18.26, down $3.39, or 15.7 percent, on the New York Stock Exchange as investors worried that the company would not be able to continue grabbing market share from Intel.
View: Neowin Forum Discussion
News source: CNN Money
Any such deal would shake up the processor industry, which is witnessing a battle over market share between AMD and larger rival Intel.
Shares of ATI rallied on Friday on renewed speculation that a deal was close at hand. Rumors that AMD could purchase the Canadian graphics chip maker surfaced in late May when an analyst suggested the move could make AMD more competitive with Intel. The speculation sent ATI shares surging about 10 percent.
AMD shares closed at $18.26, down $3.39, or 15.7 percent, on the New York Stock Exchange as investors worried that the company would not be able to continue grabbing market share from Intel.
View: Neowin Forum Discussion News source: CNN Money
I hate AMD and if they buy ATI, you can be sure my next vid card will be from nvidia.
it would have been the same whoever was on top, current amds arnt that cheap either.
it would have been the same whoever was on top, current amds arnt that cheap either.
The concern is not about pricing in general, but the progression of performance of microprocessors as a whole. Because AMD produced processors with higher performance and lower power consumption, it forced Intel scrabbling for an answer. And they responded by firing 1000 execs and introducing the core 2 duo processor line-up. Without AMD I am not sure if Intel would come up with something like the core 2 duo.
Although it is possible, let's hope it doesn't harm them.
lets hope for the best
I doubt it.
AMD can't afford to destroy ATI's core business.
If this also happens Intel will virtually be SLI-less/Crossfire-less for future chipsets, with Nvidia demanding a licence for SLI that Intel refuses to pay and ATi owned by AMD im pretty sure it could be looking bleak for new motherboards with SLI on an Intel Platform.
That something you would have to worry about intel pulling.
And wouldn't this hurt AMD's relationship with NVIDIA?
Money talks. **** walks.
Really sucks though; what can we be proud of now?
I want AMD with Nvidia.
Totally hate ATI Driver Support!
As we have seen over recent years in the AMD/Intel battle, a faster processor does not necessarily equal better sales. If this AMD/ATI merger does go through, it could prove more helpful to AMD than having faster processors. It would give AMD their own mobo chipset again, and also their own GPUs (which would even be much better than Intel's crap GPUs). Delivering a complete system like that would be more attractive to businesses that maintain images of their computers. I'm really hoping they merge ATI into AMD, rather than try to keep it separate like the Dell/Alienware deal. That would strengthen AMD's name, which is something they need. Over time, I really could see this leading to 50/50 competition with Intel (and you never know, possibly more).
Last edited by Chugworth on 22 Jul 2006 - 03:22
In all honesty, I don't see anything changing really. I can see Apple and AMD working together nicely for just graphics cards. And even if Apple does decide to change graphics vendors, they'll just change to nVidia, which won't be a huge deal since Apple already sells Power Mac G5s with nVidia cards. I don't think this will really affect Apple or their products at all, at least not at the moment.
I wouldn't be surprised if AMD pulled a Dell and left ATI has a seperate company (i.e. like what Dell did with Alienware). If that happens, I would put money on Apple staying put with ATI.
It won't. Apple uses the discreet ATI solutions not the chipsets - Apple uses the actual Intel chipsets so I doubt they would leave Intel let alone disregard the Core series performance vs AMD. Apple doesn't care about budgets either theirs is a premium product from the get go. They aren't concerned with building $299 desktops.
Also ATi are not mergeing into AMD they will stay a seperate company and work under ownership of AMD. Same as Alienware and Dell.
opinions one thing judging business practises you know nothing of is another. its stupid petty comments that cause anoying flurry on websites like this which alot of the time end up being misleading causeing a whole lot of pointless rubbish with people making rumors and assumptions
But you don't have the right to tell us not to post our opinion. Just remember that
We already have computers with Intel CPUs, mobos, and GPUs.
That would be great in my opinion it would be a heck of alot faster than any intell computer (cough)Dell(cough)
While I might be willing to try a Intel processor every once and while, I would never recommend someone counting on Intel graphics on a board.. This might make Intel up the performance line a little on their IGPs..
maybe AMD can fix thier driver and support problems! that would be great
ATI & AMD merging woul've been a bad bad idea.
like i said its like alienware being bought by dell, due to the share size and customer base of pre-exsisting Alienware. its too much for Dell to just merge to one company and is why they still 2 companys, just running under the management of one single management team, Dell.
Macromedia only had one popular line of software. ATi have how many different graphic cards ranges with how many sub-companys re-producing them being used by um how many people probably into the millions. not to mention all the other stuff they do.
Macromedia only had one popular line of software. ATi have how many different graphic cards ranges with how many sub-companys re-producing them being used by um how many people probably into the millions. not to mention all the other stuff they do.
Well still, it's not unheard of for a company the size of ATI to be completely merged into another company.
I have seen this coming years ago. IMO, I think that AMD buying out ATi is a good thing and a bad thing. In order for AMD and ATi to gain market share and gain more investors, this is one good route. ATi chipset driver support was not as fluid and dynamic as nVIDIA. I've seem to have problems getting proper driver for ATi graphic cards to work. The bad thing for Intel and nVIDIA at this point is they will lose ground on investors. I think this is one tactics that will turn some (if not many) investors to invest more in AMD technology since their CPU and GPU developement team will be working more closer together.
I can see from here on, Intel will be more flexible and closer ties with nVIDIA Corp. Although I believe that Intel should buy or merge with nVIDIA, I don't think the deal (if there will be one) will go through as both company are already the giant.
edit: if AMD can successfully grow producing CPU's and GPU's I wonder if they later on wont look to venture into other revenue fields like motherboard production ect ect.
I don't mind the merger as long as it doesn't stop the core 2 duo ATI chipsets (which seem to be awesome), and doesn't make ATI graphics cards prefer AMD CPU's (or AMD CPU's prefer ATI graphics cards).
to Andre
Intels worth 5 times what nvidia is so i really doubt nvidia can unless the owner guy of nvidia can get a mortage or somthing of about 10 billion dollars. thats like ATi trying to buy microsoft.
Lets look at is in reality
How many hardware companies are there now really??
At this point we are down to a basicly two video card choices, a couple of soundcard, fewer hard disks,.
The only real choices are cases and motherboards for the time being.
We are loosing the companies that evolved the think tanks and making other companies put more into design etc.
Our choices of hardware are being narrowied down to a select few...
Crappy and sorry aren't the words for it.
Without AMD, Intel wouldn't have even begun to ship Pentium Ds...
Competition is good and you are not smart enough to know that so go away.
I hope this doesnt mess up my plans to buy an Core 2 Duo mobo with RD600 crossfire support
in no way are they behind!, its just they dont force there CPUs upon systems builder and or try and fend intel off there markets like intel do to them. yet they still do very well.