Advanced Micro Devices Inc faces one big problem with its new strategy of developing high-end processors that compete with Intel Corp’s flagship Pentium III desktop processors – that of brand loyalty. That AMD has the technology to compete with Intel can no longer be doubted, in least in the desktop processor market. Since the introduction of Athlon this summer, AMD has been leading Intel in the clockspeed race; the new Athlons due from AMD by the end of year will clock in at 750MHz.
However, the battle that AMD now faces is for the hearts and minds of corporate IT managers. As Fourth Wave analyst, John Latta says: Intel has the brand name and the product IT managers can trust. AMD is moving into a space they have not populated before. Thus, AMD not only has to gain the respect of the tier one OEMs but also corporate managers.
That fight for brand loyalty is likely to even more acute as AMD moves into the server market with its Mustang 32-bit offerings and in 2001, the 64-bit Sledgehammer. Then, not only will AMD be competing for attention with Intel’s Xeon and Itanium/Merced chips, but also PA RISC and Alpha server chips. AMD is likely to sell all the processors they can make but becoming a major competitor to Intel will take time, reckons Latta.
