Intel losing market share on flash memory cash cow

A REPORT said that Intel is losing serious market share to Samsung in the lucrative flash memory market and might even by toppled by the Korean rival by the end of this year.

The Wall Street Journal, quoting iSuppli analyst Jim Cantore, said that during Q2 Intel had 19.2% of the flash memory market, a big drop from the 25.5% share it held in Q4 of last year.

And Samsung's market share has crept up to 17.1% in Q2 of this year, suggesting its close to crossover time.

This may not be as significant as the Journal suggests however.

Intel fabricates NOR flash memory while Samsung makes NAND flash. This type of memory has taken off recently because of its use in digital cameras and the like.

AMD, with its Fujitsu connection, is a direct competitor with Intel on flash products. µ