Strategy Analytics estimates that total GaAs device market (merchant and captive) revenues grew 10 percent year-on-year in 2006 with the market leaders, RFMD, Skyworks and TriQuint consolidating their overall ownership of the market from 47 to 55 percent. This announcement comes from the annual Strategy Analytics ranking of the world’s top ten GaAs device manufacturers.
North American GaAs device manufacturers continued to cement their dominance of the market with nine out of the top ten GaAs device manufacturers based in North America. Out of the top three, TriQuint was the fastest growing company, with GaAs device revenues growing 37 percent year-on-year.
Mitsubishi Electric was the only Japanese company to feature in the global top ten of GaAs device vendors in 2006.
“Switch complexities are increasing, which could potentially provide Japanese companies with an opportunity to regain lost ground in the cellular handset market,” observes Asif Anwar, director of Strategy Analytics’ GaAs service. “We believe that Japanese market requirements may be particularly demanding, which will play to the strengths of companies like NEC, Sony and Eudyna Devices.”
In Europe, the top GaAs device suppliers in rank order were Filtronic, UMS and OMMIC. “Filtronic was the largest European GaAs device supplier in 2006 but missed out on a top ten place,” notes Stephen Entwistle, VP Strategic Technologies Practice. “UMS was close behind and Filtronic’s time as the number one European GaAs device supplier may be short-lived.”