National Semiconductor Inc and IBM Corp are currently in the process of hammering out terms of an extension to a manufacturing agreement that National Semiconductor inherited when it bought Cyrix Corp in November (CI No 3,293). When it paid $560m for Cyrix, IBM was operating as the new addition’s microprocessor manufacturer, and at the time National Semiconductor only manufactured embedded microcontrollers. Although it now plans to have its own microprocessor facility up and running in July, it believes it is vital to keep hold of IBM as it anticipates the market for consumer products containing the devices will rocket. This growth has been speeded along as a result of the continual price fall of personal computers, and National Semiconductor spokesperson Alan Bernheimer said aside from the IBM negotiations, the company is also looking at striking foundry deals with organizations such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp. Bernheimer said the company has no idea when discussions will be complete.
