Perhaps the downturn of the car industry in the past years is to blame that Freescale lost its longtime market leadership to the “eternal second” Infineon, perhaps it was a consequence of Infineon's broader product spectrum, in particular in the power semiconductor segment. In any case, the Bavarian chip maker achieved sales of $1.31 billion with automotive parts, slightly more than Freescale which sold devices at a value of $1.163 billion. This equals a 9 percent market share for Infineon and 8 percent for Freescale.

Strategy Analytics chronicles an unprecedented decline in the automotive semiconductor business: In 2009, demand fell for the second year in a row. This is remarkable since experts across the board indefatigably assert that the semiconductor content of the vehicles is constantly climbing. However, demand for cars fell so quickly during the time frame from end of 2008 to 2009 that the decline outweighed the trend towards more chips per car. Even Infineon's automotive sales declined in both years, albeit to a lesser degree than Freescale. In addition, Strategy Analytics attests Infineon a better success in emerging markets such as India and, first of all, in China, than Freescale. STMicroelectronics continues to ranks number three in Strategy Analytics' survey.

Since Q1/2009 when the crisis had reached its climax the market has recovered significantly. In particular for Q1/2010 chip vendors report very high sales and utilization. Market researchers see a bright outlook. “Supplier restocking and a real recovery in OEM demand will ensure a return to growth for vendors in 2010,” explained Ian Riches, Director Automotive Electronics Service for Strategy Analytics.

By: DocMemory
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