12/1/2011 8:20 AM EST
LONDON - Intel is set to be a nearly $50 billion company and have enjoyed 23 percent growth in 2011 as it increases its lead of the top 20 chip company ranking produced by market research firm IHS.
This takes Intel's market share of the global chip industry to 15.9 percent in 2011, up from 13.2 percent in 2010, in the preliminary market share estimate from IHS.
Intel's achievement is the more remarkable given that it has been losing market share to Samsung over several years and that IHS has 2011 as a 1.9 percent growth year achieving $312.8 billion total up from $307 billion in 2010. Only Qualcomm and On Semiconductor will show higher percentage growth in 2011, according to IHS.
However, this then reveals that acquisitions were a key driver of progress in the 2011 ranking. Intel put on weight thanks to the acquisition of Infineon's wireless business unit, Qualcomm acquired Atheros Communications and On Semiconductor took over Sanyo Semiconductor from Panasonic.
"In a challenging year for the semiconductor market, Intel achieved success on all fronts, expanding its core microprocessor and memory businesses, while also capitalizing on a major acquisition," said Dale Ford, in a statement. "This allowed the company to outgrow the market and expand its lead over its closest competitors, defying the impact of weak economic conditions and catastrophic natural disasters in Japan and Thailand."
