| The independent semiconductor packaging and test industry is very
competitive, being comprised of approximately 50 companies with about 15 of
those companies having sales of $100 million per year or more. The Company faces substantial competition from established packaging companies primarily located in Asia, such as Advanced Semiconductor Engineering, Inc. (Taiwan), ASE Test Limited (Taiwan and Malaysia), ASAT, Ltd. (Hong Kong), Hana Microelectronics Public Co. Ltd. (Hong Kong and Thailand), Astra International (Indonesia), Carsem (Malaysia), Hyundai Corporation (Korea), Siliconware Precision Industries Co., Ltd. (Taiwan), and Shinko Electric Industries Co., Ltd. (Japan). Each of these companies has significant manufacturing capacity, financial resources, research and development operations, marketing and other capabilities, and have been operating for some time. Such companies have also established relationships with many large semiconductor companies which are current or potential customers of the Company. The principal elements of competition in the independent
semiconductor packaging market include time to market, breadth of package
offering, technical competence, design services, quality, production yields,
responsiveness and customer service and price. On a larger scale, the Company also competes with the internal manufacturing capabilities of many of its largest customers. There can be no assurance that the Company will be able to compete successfully in the future against existing or potential competitors or that the Company's operating results will not be adversely affected by increased price competition. The independent wafer fabrication business is also highly competitive. The Company expects its wafer fabrication services to compete primarily with independent wafer foundries such as Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing Ltd., Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Ltd. and United Microelectronics Corporation, as well as with integrated device manufacturers such as LG Semicon Co., Ltd., Hitachi, Ltd., Toshiba Corp. and Winbond Electronics Corporation, who provide foundry services for other semiconductor companies. Each of these companies has significant manufacturing capacity, financial resources, research and development operations, marketing and other capabilities and have been operating for some time. Many of these companies have also established relationships with many large semiconductor companies which are current or potential customers of the Company. The principal elements of competition in the wafer foundry market include technology, delivery cycle times, price, product performance, quality, production yield, responsiveness and flexibility, reliability and the ability to design and incorporate product improvements. There can be no assurance that the Company will be able to compete successfully in the future against such companies. |