Under the terms of the additional agreement, Munich-based Infineon will transfer its 0.09-micron DRAM trench technology and 300mm production know-how to Winbond, based in Taipei. In return, Winbond will manufacture DRAMs for computing applications in this technology exclusively for Infineon.

The transfer of these technologies will enable Winbond to develop and sell respective proprietary specialty memories for which Infineon will receive license fees and royalties. Infineon and Winbond will also jointly develop specialty memory parts for mobile applications.

For Infineon, the agreement enables the company to increase its 200mm and 300mm foundry capacity from Winbond. In May 2002, the two companies inked an agreement whereby Winbond would use Infineon's 0.11-micron DRAM trench technology to manufacture DRAMs for computing applications in its 200mm plant in Hsinchu.

Winbond is constructing a 300mm plant in Taichung, Taiwan, that will be ready late 2005.

"The extension of our cooperation with Winbond underlines our partner commitment in Asia and it further supports the growth of our DRAM business and product portfolio," said Thomas Seifert, CEO of Memory Products Business Group at Infineon Technologies AG, in a statement. "At the same time we are further strengthening our regional presence and aiming overall at a leading market position in Asia/Pacific."

The expanded agreement could help Infineon strengthen its ranking as one of the leading DRAM suppliers. According to market research firm Gartner Dataquest, the semiconductor market in Asia is set to grow from $4.9 billion in 2003 to $9.4 billion in 2008.

By: DocMemory
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