Intel Corp has once again pushed its next-generation Merced processor further into the future. The company announced Friday it had informed customers that it had changed the production schedule for the 64-bit chip, with sample volumes now expected in 1999 and planned production volumes shifting from 1999 to mid- 2000. Earlier information from Intel and other industry heavyweights such as IBM Corp and Hewlett-Packard Co had Merced shipping in volume by mid-to-late 1999 – so the new schedule represents a delay of somewhere between six to nine months. An Intel spokesperson insisted that by its internal estimates the delay is only six months. The company asserted that the push back was not the result of some specific problem or glitch in the product, but rather comes after constant reviews indicated that the company underestimated the evaluation time of the new chips. The spokesperson said that Intel is overly concerned with meeting the quality expectations that the company’s name implies and can’t be too careful about releasing only products that have been fully validated. Intel also said that since it has been public with Merced information in the past, it decided to announce the new schedule to everyone, and not just customers and partners affected by the change.
