Total worldwide semiconductor revenue reached $315 billion in 2013, up 5 percent from 2012, according to Gartner, Inc. The combined revenue of the top 25 semiconductor vendors increased by 6.9 percent during 2013. This was a significantly better performance than the rest of the market, whose revenue growth was 0.9 percent, and was due, in part, to the concentration of memory vendors in the top ranking. The memory market increased 23.5 percent in 2013.
"After a weak start to 2013 due to excess inventory, revenue growth strengthened during the second and third quarters before leveling off during the fourth quarter," said Andrew Norwood, research vice president at Gartner. "Memory, and in particular DRAM, led this growth; not due to strong demand, but rather weak supply growth that pushed pricing higher. In fact, the overall market faced a number of demand headwinds during the year, with PC production declining 9.9 percent and the premium smartphone market showing signs of saturation as growth tilted toward lower-priced, albeit quite capable, entry-level and midrange smartphone models."
Intel saw a second year of revenue contraction with sales down 1 percent, mostly due to falling PC sales. However, it continues to command a clear lead, holding the No. 1 position for the 22nd consecutive year with 15.4 percent of the market.
"After a weak start to 2013 due to excess inventory, revenue growth strengthened during the second and third quarters before leveling off during the fourth quarter," said Andrew Norwood, research vice president at Gartner. "Memory, and in particular DRAM, led this growth; not due to strong demand, but rather weak supply growth that pushed pricing higher. In fact, the overall market faced a number of demand headwinds during the year, with PC production declining 9.9 percent and the premium smartphone market showing signs of saturation as growth tilted toward lower-priced, albeit quite capable, entry-level and midrange smartphone models."
Intel saw a second year of revenue contraction with sales down 1 percent, mostly due to falling PC sales. However, it continues to command a clear lead, holding the No. 1 position for the 22nd consecutive year with 15.4 percent of the market.
