it has now been weeks that Elpida is trying to attract a partner and/or being acquired by one of the largest DRAM manufacturer. Digitimes indicates that Apple has been placing a huge order to Elpida.


This deal must be large enough to have pushed Samsung marketshare down by 6% and Hynix, another RAM manufacturer, lost 9%. It seems that Apple is doing everything possible to avoid Samsung to become the DRAM leader without real competition. In addition Apple is probably trying to work on its dependency to Samsung for components: DRAM, processor Ax, Retina display, etc.


While Elpida is working hard to survive, Apple acts to maintain competition on this market while making a good deal. This is probably the only way to get DRAM at lower price than the one offered by Samsung.


Time will tell us if Apple will renew such deal with Elpida or if it was only an very opportunistic deal concluded with a company struggling for its survival. So, is Apple the white knight for Elpida or only a vulture (or will adopt a position somewhere in between)!?
By linathael, original by linathael

Elpida has been publicized as being a manufacturer of fantastic memories, but it is not well known at least here in Brazil, a large market by the way. So Apple did the right thing to boost a great company to help it make money instead of going bankrupt and remain in the hands of Samsung or another large one what would make real competition harder to exist thus causing oligopoly.