Intel Corp admits it is having difficulty keeping up with demand for certain Pentium II chips in the face of unexpectedly high demand. What the company describes as spot shortages of 266-MHz and 300MHz processors have arisen as a result of underestimated demand by the company and the ongoing transition from the 0.35 micron to 0.25 micron fabrication process. A spokesperson said that the company can still fulfill its commitments to customers with regard to the chips in question, but that there are some people out there that would like more of the parts. Thus, any new orders that may come in won’t necessarily get filled and some customers will have to either move up to higher clock speed Pentium Iis, which are already being produced in the 0.25 micron format and are apparently in large supply, move down to the Celeron, or wait. Intel admits that part of the problem is that it slightly underforecasted supplemental demand, or turns orders, during the quarter. The company expects to be back on top of the situation in the September-October timeframe. As to whether the shortfall in chips would affect the company’s current third quarter, the spokesperson insisted that Intel hasn’t changed any guidance to Wall Street, and is still expecting to revenue and operating income of flat to slightly up from the second quarter, when it posted net income down 29% at $1.17bn on revenue down 0.6% at $5.93bn.
