Hynix Semiconductor is again seeking to transfer cutting-edge semiconductor technology abroad. Hynix on Thursday said it has been negotiating with ProMOS Technologies, a Taiwanese chipmaker, on the transfer of technology to produce 54-nano DRAMs. Just after Hynix president Kim Jong-kap took office in 2007, Hynix attempted to transfer the lower-level 66-nano technology to ProMOS, but relented amid an outcry over the technology drain.

Only Samsung Electronics and Hynix, the world's first and second-ranking memory chipmakers, have so far worked out mass production plans for the cutting-edge 54-nano technology. Hynix is seeking to diversify its production base, including making products on commission at ProMOS, to cut costs and evade countervailing duties it has to pay if it directly exports goods to the U.S. or Europe.

"When the transfer of 66-nano technology was delayed, ProMOS wanted 54-nano technology, a higher-level technology. So we've been holding talks over its transfer,” a Hynix executive said. "The transfer of this technology is not a drain of cutting-edge technology to a foreign country, but an export."

But experts are worried that the transfer could decisively reduce the competitiveness of Korea’s semiconductor technologies. The Industrial Technology Drain Prevention Act, a law that went into effect in 2007, stipulates that 80-nano or lesser semiconductor technologies are key technologies that the country must protect. Hynix is therefore expected to face a tough time in consultations with the Ministry of Knowledge-based Economy.

After Kim took office, Hynix reported a deficit in the fourth quarter of 2007 for the first time in eight quarters. The chipmaker will also post an operating loss of more than W300 billion (US$1=W950) in the first quarter of this year, securities firms estimate.

By: Docmemory
Copyright © 2023 CST, Inc. All Rights Reserved